Camp Echidna
by I Was Divided by Zero
Summary: Okay, so let me get this straight: There's Camp Half-Blood for half-Greek gods and Camp Jupiter for half-Roman gods. Did we miss anyone? Oh yeah, let's not forget about Camp Echidna: The summer camp for children of Greek monsters! The Minotaur? Sirens? Medusa? You really thought they'd let the gods have all the fun? Oh please! They get out more often than you'd think... #OCs
1. Chapter 1

**Thursday, June 13th, 2013 - First day of summer!**

**Greetings, network! I'm Divide, and this is the rewrite of Camp Echidna. Think of it as a second draft that has less grammatical errors, has less cheesy dialogue, and makes more sense in general. I'll warn you right now that this has spoilers from all the books, including Mark of Athena. In other words, I've read all the books in the series [except The Demigod Diaries].**

**Shush, I'm getting to it! Anyway, please enjoy my first PJO fanfiction, Camp Echidna.**

* * *

Look, I didn't want to be a half-blood.

And _no_, I'm _not_ that stupid guy Peter Jackson or whatever his name is.

I'm telling you that now because _he_ got the story all wrong. He left out some important details that he really should've told you all about. But I'll get to that later.

So, Lamia is telling me that I'm legally required to tell you this or something: Being a half-blood is dangerous. Not necessarily scary, but definitely dangerous. But I guess if you truly are one, you'd probably ignore my advice about that. We're all thrill-seekers on the inside.

That actually brings me to my next point: If you think you _are_ a half-blood, you might want to close this webpage now. Knowing more about who you are just makes it easier for them to see you. Just go on jumping off cliffs, throwing yourself into fires, and keep up all those sweet stink bomb explosions in the your school bathrooms. Anything besides reading this.

Of course, if you _don't_ do that on a regular basis, keep on reading. I admire you for being able to pretend that none of this ever happened.

But, if at any time you recognize yourself in these pages or if you feel the sudden urge to do something spontaneous and violent, stop reading immediately. It's only a matter of time before the Mist is spread too thin.

Don't say I didn't warn you.

...

"Hey dad." I pushed the front door to my house open and stomped my mud-covered boots on the rug.

"Hi Ari," he sighed tiredly.

As expected, he was hunched over his work desk studying something under a microscope. Officially, he's a professor at the university, Dr. Gabriel Weaver. He's an entomologist, somebody who studies bugs. But he does some independent research on the side. I mean, if you call squinting through magnifying glasses at tiny little insect antennae research.

"Whatcha working on?" I asked, shrugging my backpack off my shoulders.

"Just some tarantula barbs, the usual."

"Okay." I started trudging through the clutter littered around the living room floor. Papers, empty terrariums, art supplies, etc.

Dad straightened up in his chair. "I got a call from that science teacher of yours."

"Yeah?" I asked, coolly, knowing what was coming.

"Detention?"

"Yeah," I affirmed.

"Should I be exceptionally concerned with this particular incident?"

"No. It was just spiders this time, not rats like last week."

He grunted at me and went back to his tarantula barbs.

I nodded and walked down the hall to my room and sat down in the chair across from my terrarium. It was essentially a big fish tank, but no fish. No water, either. Just dirt and leaves and rocks. And Theodore, of course. He's my pet spider. Awesome, right?

My name is Ariadne Weaver. Yeah, like this: air-ee-odd-nee. People- and by that I mean substitute teachers -tend to get confused by that. My dad says that I'm named after a princess in Greek mythology, which I've always thought was really cool.

I'm thirteen years old. Until a few months ago, I was an eighth grader at Fairview Junior High, a public school full of poor and troubled kids alike.

Am I a poor kid?

Well, I'm definitely not a rich kid.

Am I a troubled kid?

Yeah. You could say that.

I could start at any point in my disturbing, danger-filled life; like the time in kindergarten when I found a spider on the playground and let it sit on my head obediently while I tortured ants with a magnifying glass. Or maybe that day in fifth grade when we were on a field trip to the pet store and I let the tarantula out of its box. I especially liked the time when we went to a theme park as an end-of-the-year celebration with my friends. We all went on a roller coaster together and the car got stuck upside-down. I got out and somehow crawled all the way down the framework of the coaster. I didn't mean to look so "spider-like," as they put it, but what was I supposed to do? You can probably guess I didn't have all that many friends after that.

Well, there was always Kaia. She's my best friend. But, she's a little... freaky. Honestly, if there was one word to describe her, it would be snake-like. She's like a freaking ninja. She could sneak up on you while wearing jingle bells. You'd think she would be really clumsy and loud, because she walks kinda funny. She drags her feet, but at the same time, she seems to almost glide down the hallways at school.

Kaia also has this lisp that gets on everybody's nerves. She said she had brain damage as a child and that's why she has it. It's not like she's hard to understand or anything, it's just something about the letter _S_ that makes her sound like she's hissing at everyone.

Like I was saying, Kaia has been my one and only true friend since... forever. Plus, she's my partner in crime. I swear, Kaia and I can't even be in the same room and not find some way to make it dangerous or explosive.

A smile spread across my face at the funny memories we shared.

"Come on out, Theodore!" I called to the terrarium.

Suddenly, a small scuttling sound came from the leaves. Out popped a set of beady, black eyes.

"Hey," I cooed, lifting up the lid to the tank. I stuck my hand in and Theodore shuffled onto it and up my arm, as he always does.

"How's my eight-legged buddy doing today? Sorry I didn't get to see you this morning, you were sleeping," I joked.

Theodore looked up at me from my shoulder with all eight of his eyes. He almost seemed to speak to me: _Hello to you too, Ariadne. Yes, I'm sorry I was sleeping in this morning; you must have missed my company._

I had always imagined that spiders talked in British accents. "Oh no, it was okay. Did you miss me? How was the rest of your day?"

_My day was great, thank you for asking. How was school?_

"Oh, Theodore, you should've seen the spiders we were studying in science class today! It was so funny to watch them run around scaring everyone."

_I wish I could have been there, Ariadne. But I heard your father on the phone with your teacher. You got detention?_

"Yeah." I sighed.

_That's too bad. But you know what else I heard today?_

I rolled my eyes. "What?"

_Your father is going to finally publish his book._

"Really? He's finally gonna publish it?"

Theodore didn't answer.

Of course he didn't.

I snapped back to reality, realizing once again that my pet spider really was just a pet spider. Spiders couldn't talk. Their brains are the size of- wait, did spiders even have brains?

"Hey dad!" I called.

"Yeah?"

"Do spiders have brains?"

I could hear him sigh out loud through the door. "Every animal in the world has a brain. Every animal in the world has a heart. And, if you're wondering, humans are animals too," he explained impatiently. "Maybe if you paid attention in science class you wouldn't need to ask me those things."

He sounded really stressed. Dad was usually very patient with my ADHD and he _always_ liked explaining stuff about bugs to me. What was up with him?

"Hey dad," I joked, trying to cheer him up, "I bet you're stressed out about the book finally being published, huh?" I smiled down at Theodore, who twitched his legs at me.

"How did you know about that?" I could hear him stand up from his squeaky chair in the other room. The wooden floor boards in the hallway creaked.

"You mean... you're actually gonna-" I started.

He cut me off. "It was supposed to be a surprise." But instead of looking angry like I thought he would, he appeared very happy. It had been a while since I'd seen him this happy, smiling and everything.

I smiled back at him, even though I was convinced I was going insane. I sneaked a peak at Theodore resting on my arm.

_I told you so,_ he seemed to say. But this time, I knew I wasn't talking to myself. My pet spider had _actually_ spoken to me.

...

I quietly munched on a piece of bagel while I listened to the announcements over the loudspeaker the next day. _Lunch today is blah blah blah. Clubs today are blah blah blah._ The usual.

But nothing seemed usual to me anymore. My dad never did find out how I knew his book was getting published. I guess I never really found out either. I was pretty sure I was going crazy, what with Theodore wishing me a good morning when I got up today.

I mean, it was cool and all, but spiders don't _usually_ talk to people, do they? I'd ask Kaia about it. She seemed to know everything about anything creepy and mysterious. In fact, if snake-like is the first word that comes to mind when I picture Kaia, mysterious would be the second.

Right now, for example. We were sitting in the lunchroom and she was scarfing down an unimaginable amount food that she had somehow managed to fit in a tiny, brown paper bag. Whenever I thought she'd finished eating, she would just reach into the bag and pull out another sandwich.

I tucked my black hair behind my ears and popped a grape in my mouth.

"Sso, what'ss been up with you lately?" Kaia asked me with her mouth full. I didn't know how she could even move her mouth with that much food in it. Her jaws were just weird like that, like they almost _unhinged_ or something.

"Nothing much. Yesterday in science class we got to play with spiders."

"Ssweet! Were you able to-?"

"Completely freak out the teacher? Yup!" I grinned.

She laughed, gulped down her mouthful of food, and then proceeded to draw another sandwich out of the lunch sack.

"What do those things even have _in_ them?" I finally asked her.

"Rat meat," she answered, rolling her eyes like that should have been obvious.

I laughed. "You're kidding."

Kaia's green eyes flitted back and forth for a second, and then she gave a rather unconvincing chuckle. "Uh, yeah, it'ss actually, er- beef, or whatever."

"Right, sure."

"Well, you're one to talk! What in the world are _you_ eating?"

I glanced down at the tube I was holding. Cleverly concealed inside a barbecue-flavored Pringles chip container, was a pile of bugs.

Kaia snatched at the container and succeeded in bumping the tube out of my hands. The container went rolling, spreading cheese-flavored cricket bits out onto the table.

"What the heck, Kaia!?" I screamed, standing up and only drawing more attention to the dead bugs.

Some girls sitting near us screamed and nearly jumped over each other to get away.

"Oh my gawd! You eat _bugs_!?" a redheaded girl yelped.

"It's just like Cheetos!" I tried to explain.

"Gross! Sick!" hissed another girl. "And I thought you couldn't get _any_ weirder!"

"Dude... that's _wicked!_" some guy at another table shouted.

"I'm sso ssorry! Sso ssorry!" Kaia hurriedly started scooping up the crickets and stuffing them back into the package.

"Just leave it Kaia, someone else will clean it up," I said, suppressing my anger.

"But-"

"Let's just go."

"Go where?"

"Anywhere else but here."

Kaia nodded, like she understood. Of course she did. She was Kaia.

As teachers came over to inspect the damage, Kaia and I slipped out the back doors and crossed the yard in front of the school. I walked with my hands in the pockets of my jacket for a while.

"I really am ssorry." Kaia finally spoke up after about fifteen minutes. At first I thought she was talking about us skipping school, but then I realized she was talking about what happened at lunch.

"It's okay, I knew you didn't mean to."

She sighed with a hint of relief and pushed her dark hair behind her ears. After a moment of silence, she said, "Um, can I assk _why_ you eat cricketss?"

"Why wouldn't I eat them? They don't waste space like cows or pigs; they don't eat or drink as much as they do either. Their better for the environment and they taste- never mind."

"No, really, what?"

"I was saying that they taste... natural. Good. Satisfying. To me, anyway. Like how eating livestock is to you _normal _people."

"Hey! I thought we both agreed that normal is overrated. No talking like that! Who want to be _normal_ anyway? It'ss sso boring."

I looked up and smiled at Kaia. She always knew exactly how to cheer me up. Exactly what I was thinking. Exactly what I was gonna do next...

I suddenly threw my hand up into the air, near Kaia's head. It was just to test her and I would never have actually hit her, but I guess _she_ didn't know that. She lunged at me and bit down hard on my arm.

"Ouch!" I yelped.

"Oh! Ssorry! Ssorry, ssorry, ssorry!" Kaia frantically hopped back and forth, waving her hands about in the air.

"It's okay-" I started, but she apparently wasn't finished with her apology.

"Ssorry! It was jusst natural insstinct! I sswear I didn't mean to-"

"Kaia!" I interrupted.

She stopped flailing her arms around like a madwoman and looked at me. "Oh my godss! You're, like, bleeding!"

I suddenly felt a stinging sensation in my forearm where she had bit me. I looked down and saw something that made me absolutely sick to my stomach.

The flesh around the two puncture marks on my skin was turning _green_.

I yelped and frantically rubbed my hand up and down my arm, smearing the blood everywhere.

"Sstop! Sstop! You're making it worsse by sspreading the venom around!"

"Spreading the _what_!?" I screamed and waved by arm back and forth, as if I could shake away the horrible stinging feeling in my arm.

"Ari! Stop it! You're only sspeeding up the processs! Moving your arm like that will make your blood pump faster! It's sspreading the poison to your heart!"

I had absolutely no time to wonder about why my skin was turning green. I only had enough time to register Kaia's words and stop flinging my arm around.

"Okay..." Kaia's voice now sounded disturbingly peaceful. "Now you have to _calm down_."

"How I'm a supposed to calm down when my-"

"Jusst. Calm. Down."

I took a deep breath, trying to do as Kaia said.

"Good." She grimaced. "Your heart should stop beating any minute now."

"WHAT!?" I screamed. Obviously my heart rate would _not_ be going down anytime soon.

"I didn't just say that!" Kaia screamed and beat her fists against the sides of her head.

"Ahh! What just happened!? And since when do you have fangs!?" It was true. Kaia's face looked longer and sharper than usual... and when she opened her mouth to answer my questions, her canine teeth were strangely elongated.

My knees were jelly. I sat down hard in the grass.

"Ari? Ari, are you okay!?" Kaia kneeled next to me.

"Is this some kind of sick joke?" I choked out. My breathing had become shallow and any part of me that wasn't green was deathly pale. Could I really be dying?

"No, it's really happening- I mean- er- no! This is all a big hallucination!"

"You _really_ suck at lying, Kaia."

"Okay! Okay! This is real!"

"Then you better start explaining _now_," I commanded.

"Um, sure, okay! Soo... uh... long story..."

"Out with it! I'm dying over here!" My anger management issues were really showing now.

"Okay, so, you know the, like, Greek myths, right?"

"Yeah, duh. I'm named after one!"

"Oh, right, I should have figured that out. Anyway! So, like, how do I say this? Well... they're real."

"Get to the part about you having fangs!" I spat through clenched teeth, not having time to worry about the whole "Greek mythology is real" concept.

"Okay, so there's like these Greek gods, right? So like, there's this one god, who made, like, this one monster called Echidna. And she, like, made all these other monsters like the Sirens and the Chimera and-"

"I get it!"

"Okay, so, I'm one of the monsters. I'm a scythian dracaena... snake woman."

"And you just bit me, and I'm gonna die?" I said, because that's really the only detail that I gave a crap about.

"Maybe not!" Kaia said hurriedly. "If you would just calm down and get your heart to stop pumping the venom all over your body you might be able to overcome the poison."

"Fine!" I took a few deep breaths.

"Great!" Kaia forced a smile. "Now drink this!" She produced a clear plastic water bottle from out of nowhere. Only, I seriously doubted that it was holding water. The liquid inside was a dark red color. Like... blood.

"What the heck is _that_?" But I took it in my trembling hands and popped open the top with my teeth. I hesitantly raised it to my lips and took a small sip. I couldn't tell you what it tasted like, because it didn't really taste like anything. Water, maybe. But even _water_ has some kind of taste. This was like, drinking liquid _air_.

I took another sip, except this time, Kaia tipped the bottom up and the whole thing went into my mouth. I was choking and sputtering for a second or two, but then it was like it evaporated in my mouth.

It was a pleasant sensation. Until I blacked out the next second.

* * *

**So, the little thing about the crickets in this chapter was just me feeling obligated to write about them in honor of my English teacher. (Inside joke. Kind of.)**

**Wow, what do you think the blood-red liquid is? What do you think made her pass out? The venom or the liquid? Where do you think she'll wake up? _If_ she wakes up... nah, I'm just kidding. She didn't die, I'm not _that_ mean! Not that I'm saying there won't be character deaths in this book, or anything...**

**So, just in case you were wondering, this is gonna take place _after_ the Battle of the Labyrinth, but _before_ the Last Olympian. I just wanted to clarify that!**

**Please review!**

**~Divide /0**

**PS: _Please_ read the author's notes, by the way. They hold important information that is essential in understanding the story!**


	2. Chapter 2

**Friday, June 14th, 2013 - Early updates!?**

**So, yeah. I've decided to update early because I just realized that one update a week for chapters that most of you have already read is ridiculous. So, until I get all the old, rewritten chapters up, I will be updating every day! That's right, every day!**

**And, before you start reading, I'm gonna answer some guest reviews quick...**

**To ButterLover2345: Thanks! I'm glad to be back, and I'm glad that you like my story!**

**To Madin456: Yeah, sorry about that. I just realized that everyone else who has reviewed before is going to have to review as a guest for the next few chapters, too... so, my bad! Sorry 'bout that!**

**To Epithet2: Thank you so much! That actually means a whole lot to me. *SPOILER ALERT FOR PEOPLE WHO HAVE JUST STARTED READING* I'm so glad that _most_ of you are great readers and understand that me and Ariadne are not the same person, and that just because Ari might think Annabeth is a ax-wielding serial killer, that doesn't mean that I do! *SPOILER ALERT END* So, thank you for that. Love ya'!**

**To thisdstoryispoop (great name, btw): But... if you think the original story sucked, then why the heck are you still reading the rewrite? Don't you have better things to do than sit around and find out what happens to characters that you already know you hate? I'm not gonna blame you for not reading it, you know.**

**To the person who didn't put their name so it's just "Guest": OMG NO SPOILERS ABOUT HOMESTUCK I'M ONLY ON ACT 2 RIGHT NOW SO SHHH! (Also, thanks for reading and reviewing! Love ya', too!)**

* * *

The room I stood in was vast and echoey. The ceiling was high and the walls were white like marble. In the center of the room, there was a small throne, facing away from me. I walked towards it, not really knowing what else to do. Suddenly, the chair spun around and revealed who sat upon it. It was me. But it wasn't me. At least, I didn't think it was me.

The girl slouching in the throne definitely looked like me. She had the same long, wavy, black hair as me. And she had dark blue eyes like me. The same short, turned-up nose. The same thin lips. The same everything. She was a complete copy of me.

"Everything is about to get very... interesting," the other-me growled.

"What do you mean?" I asked her.

"Just you wait. You'll see, soon enough."

...

As the dream faded, I let out a loud shriek. I clutched the blankets that now engulfed me.

"Shhh, everything's alright," cooed a soft voice.

"Wha-? Where am I?"

"Before I tell you that, I'm supposed to inform you that you're not dead. Congratulations!"

"Huh?" I opened my eyes. The light was blinding, and if the voice hadn't just told me different, I would have thought I was in heaven. "How long was I out?"

"A couple days, no biggie."

"Wha-?" _A couple days?_

"Your name is Ariadne Weaver. You're thirteen years old. Your best friend is Kaia Dilitirio."

"Why are you telling me that? I already know those things." I ran my hand through my hair.

"Well, that's good. Sometimes the side effects from scythian dracaena venom can be unpredictable. We want to make sure people haven't lost their memory when they wake up. By the way... you can still see, right?"

"Scythian dracaena?" I had heard that somewhere before... I just couldn't place it...

"Yeah. Snake-women. Didn't Kaia tell you?"

And then it all came flooding back to me. I remembered Kaia biting me, and my flesh turning green, and her telling me about how she was a snake-woman.

"Oh my god," I breathed.

"Er, you mean _gods._ Plural."

Oh yeah, _right. _"You mean, she wasn't joking?" I asked nervously.

"Does this look like a joke?" Something took hold of my wrist and lifted my arm into my line of sight. The flesh around the bite mark was a rotten color, like vomit and mold and other gross stuff all mixed together.

I gagged.

"Yeah, that's what I thought. I'll wrap it up for you," said the warm voice, who I was now quite sure was male.

I finally turned my head to see a dark figure sitting in a chair next to my bed. The person wore a black jacket with the hood up, and sunglasses. He took my arm in both hands and started gingerly wrapping gauze around my forearm.

"Who _are_ you?" I asked.

"The name's Chaos," he answered. He sounded like someone in an action movie.

"That doesn't sound like a real name," I stated.

"Well, tell that to my dad then, because I don't think so either, but he doesn't listen to _me _about it. It's Greek. The immortal force that created the titans, blah, blah, blah."

"So, the Greek gods are real, huh?" I asked nonchalantly.

"More importantly, Greek _monsters_ are real. But yeah, that's pretty much it."

"Okay!" I cheered sarcastically, figuring that there were better things to worry about at the moment. "So, where am I?"

"I don't have permission to tell you that yet." Chaos sat back in his chair. "But, listen; you just got poisoned by your best friend. That's not just bad luck, that's _half-blood _luck. You should rest."

"Half-blood?"

"You're only half human."

"Riiight."

"You'll come to accept it in time."

"So, if I'm only half human, do I even _want_ to know what my other 50% is?"

"Probably not."

"Okay, then what am I?"

He sighed and shrugged his shoulders. "I couldn't tell you."

I didn't know if that meant he didn't know, or if he wasn't supposed to tell me, or whatever, but I was pretty confused in general right about then.

"Does my dad know I'm here?" I asked, suddenly very worried. "Can I talk to him?"

"Oh, yeah. I called him myself actually. Explained the whole thing to him."

"Even the supposed Greek-gods-are-real part?"

"Oh, he already knew that."

"_What?_"

He shrugged. "Don't ask me. All he said was that he'd take care of your spider for you, or something."

A few moments of silence passed.

"You wanna go see if we can find Kaia?" he finally asked.

"Yes!" I breathed, happy to finally have something to do other than mentally scream at my dad. Plus, maybe Kaia could knock some sense into me.

Except, there was one problem. I couldn't quite walk. I tried sitting up, and I got really dizzy. When I swung my legs around to get out of bed, my vision went fuzzy. Heck, I wouldn't be able to stand up, let alone _walk_.

"Here." Chaos held out his arm to me and I took hold of it. He lifted me all the way up and out of bed with just his _one_ arm.

"Whoa, do have, like, super powers?" I asked in awe.

"Yeah, I guess you could say that." He grinned down at me as he led me out into a long hallway. "But you're just really small."

I noticed that he must've been at least a year older than me. He was maybe a foot taller than me, but skinny.

"So, uh, what's with the shades indoors?" I asked him. "Are you, like, blind?"

"Nope."

I decided not to question him any further. At least I knew he could see, because I sure didn't know where I was going. He dragged me down hallway after hallway, passing door after identical door. Everything looked exactly the same.

"_Do _you know where you're going?" I asked nervously.

He stopped to give me a look. "Hey, don't doubt me. This place just seems big because the hallways go in circles. Come on, I think we're almost out." He smirked and started off again, pulling me with him.

...

By the time we _actually_ got out of that huge place, I was about ready to throw up again. I sat panting with my head in between my knees on the front steps, waiting for my vision to focus.

"Yo, Chaos!" I heard someone call. "What's wrong with the new girl?"

"She had some scythian dracaena venom. She just woke up."

"_Dude!_ How is she still _living!?_" The sound of crunching feet on dirt came closer.

"Lamia says it's because she has a natural immunity to it," Chaos responded. "She thinks she's probably one of us."

I looked up, having finally gotten my head to stop spinning.

"Well, I'll tell you one thing," the new guy said, "she's too cute to be one a you _snake-heads_." He winked a golden eye at me through a swoosh of dark hair.

"_Poine infinita,_ Ruin," Chaos breathed. He held out his hand to help me up, I took it gratefully and tried to take one of my own steps. I was surprised when I didn't black out.

"_Aconitum!_" the new guy cheered. "Nice going Poison-Girl. I don't know too many people who've survived scythian dracaena venom before."

"Uh... thanks?"

"Oh, sorry," he held out his hand to me, "I'm Ruin."

I shook his hand awkwardly. "What's with all the weird names?"

"Hey, you've got a Greek name, don't you?"

"Ariadne, yeah."

Ruin laughed. "Ariadne, Ariadne. Just wait until the _Minotaurs_ hear about this." He turned tail and jogged off down a dirt road. "See you around!"

"Uh... what just happened?" I asked Chaos.

"Don't mind him. Ruin's kind of... eccentric."

"He called you something... a snake-head? And did he say _Minotaur_?"

"Tell you about it later. So, what do you think about camp so far?" He swept his arm around, gesturing to the valley laid out in front of us.

My eyes darted around and for the first time I noticed all the other people here. In the distance, there were two long buildings. One seemed to be made out of marble, the other one was splintery wood. Surrounding those building were clusters of black trees. And kids. Some were older, maybe 16 or 17, but most seemed about 13, like me. They talked and laughed and seemed to be having fun.

I turned around to see the large house that I'd just come out of was painted dark red and most windows were dark. A fold-out chalkboard sign on the porch read: "Sick Bay."

The dirt path that Ruin had taken led down into the valley. There was a small river that running down the middle of it that pooled in the center to form a small lake.

To my left, there was only sky. Well, a cliff and _then_ sky.

I walked out and looked over the edge. I wasn't afraid of heights, so I scooted right to the edge. Sharp rocks jutted out from the sandy beach below. Farther out, there was only blue, crystalline ocean for as far as the eye could see. I took in a breath of crisp, salty sea air. I had never been to the ocean before. "It's... beautiful," I awed. The waves crashed against the rocks. "Where _are_ we?"

"Welcome to Camp Echidna, Miami, Florida."

"Camp enchilada?"

Chaos laughed. "Camp Ee-kid-nah. You know, the mother of all monsters?"

"Oh yeah, that one myth."

"Er- you mean-"

"Yeah yeah, the Greek myths are real. I get it."

"So you believe me?"

"Not really, but seeing is believing, so... show me something," I said, only half-joking.

"It's not quite that easy."

"You said you had super powers earlier. What happened to those?"

"Uh..." he hesitated.

"ARI!" shouted a familiar voice.

"Kaia!?" I swiveled around to see her and I was met with an eyeful of scaly, green skin. "Whoa!" I jumped up and almost fell off the cliff behind me.

"Pleasse don't be afraid! Damn, I sshould've waited to clear the Misst," she grumbled.

From the waist up, she was pretty much exactly the same Kaia I had come to know and love, except for the fangs of course. But her legs were a different matter. In place of her regular, old, human legs; were two thick snake bodies? At first I thought she was wearing snakeskin pants or something, but then I saw her _walk._ Um... I mean... slither.

"Kaia!" I yelled. She stopped grumbling to herself to look at me. "That is so FREAKING AWESOME!" I announced.

"You're not... sscared?"

"No way! This is the coolest thing I've ever seen!"

"But, I mean, it'ss not _normal_ to have ssnake legs and fangs..."

"Hey!" I snapped. "Normal is overrated!"

Her face broke into a grin, and even through her fangs were a new addition, I was quite sure that this was my best friend.

"Oh, hi Chaos." Kaia seemed to notice him for the first time since she got here.

"Sup," he answered, unfazed by Kaia's snake legs.

"I'm gonna give Ari a tour. How much did you tell her?"

"The usual."

"M'kay!" She started off towards the valley, slithering along just like a snake.

I stumbled after her, but turned back to look at the boy standing in beautiful cliff scene. "Wait, Chaos, do you wanna come with us?"

"Nope, I'm good." He waved us on. "Well actually... I have a question for Ariadne."

"What is it?"

"Do you believe me now?" He grinned, knowing the answer.

I turned to look Kaia up and down again. "Definitely," I said to him.

"Then my work here is done."

...

"So."

"Sso."

"Greek myths aren't really myths, huh?"

"Yup."

Somehow, I found that easy to believe. Like I'd known it all my life or something. "So, like, _everything_ in the myths is real? The gods? The Underworld?"

"Yup. Everything."

"How does that work? Are they all over the world?" I asked.

"Nope, just the United States. They move around with Western civilization. Don't ask me why. I just accept that I'm here with snake legs and don't question it."

Somehow, that made sense to me. "So... what is this place?" I asked for what seemed like the millionth time.

"Well, as long as we're talking about the gods being real, I might as well mention that all the monsters are real too."

"I've noticed."

"So, I suppose I should explain that even though it was like a bazillion years ago, the gods haven't changed much since they were first around. They have lots of kids, even with mortals."

"Uh... cool?"

"Well, maybe for them!" Kaia snapped. "They think they're so special. 'Ooo, look at me, I'm a _demigod_! Look at me with my special godly _powers_! I'm so _awesome_!'" she mocked in a high pitched voice. "They make me sick."

"Okay, so you were saying..."

"Oh yeah, so there's these demigods running around all over the U.S., killing the monsters off. Like it's their_ job_ or something! Ugh, completely annoying. Anyway, you know some of the monsters in Greek mythology, right?"

"Sure I do. Medusa, the Sirens, the Minotaur, Hydra, I could go on and on. But didn't they all die a really long time ago? Like, heroes killed them off and everything, right?"

"Not really. You can't kill a monster. Well, you could, but it would just go to Tartarus and reform again. Sometimes it takes a while, but they come back; that's part of the reason heroes exist. They keep us at bay."

"Tartar sauce?" I asked.

"Tar-ta-russ," Kaia sounded out the word to me. "The deepest part of the Underworld where all monsters come from."

"Oh. So, the famous monsters from the stories are still alive?"

"Exactly. So the monsters, when they noticed that the gods were having all these kids with the mortals, they decided that they needed some help to defeat all of them."

"Oh."

"Well, don't look so surprised. You really thought they'd let the gods have all the fun?"

I shrugged. "I guess not."

"So, along with the demigods, there are these kids that are half-human and half-monster. Pretty awesome, huh?"

"Yeah I guess. But... where _are_ all the half-monsters?"

"By the way, we call them half-bloods. The stupid demigods stole the name from us because they thought it _sounded_ cooler. They are so selfish."

"Okay, so where are all the _half-bloods_?" I repeated.

"That's what Camp Echidna is for!" Kaia swept her arm around, gesturing to all the kids milling around the valley. "We train half-bloods to fight demigods."

"You mean... _all_ of these people are half-bloods?"

"Yup. And you're one of 'em!"

"_What!?_ How can you tell?"

"You smell like one, duh," she said simply.

I fought the urge to sniff myself.

"You have an aura of power to you like no other human. You've got ADHD and anger management issues, right? Those are sure signs of a half-blood. The ADHD is to help you in battle; you've got faster reflexes than normal people. The anger management stuff is because you're naturally vicious. It's in your blood. Not to mention you survived the Nemean lion's blood, much more, my scythian dracaena venom."

"_Lion's blood_?"

"Ah: _Nemean_ lion's blood."

I decided to ignore that comment and move onto more pressing matters. "How did you even _find_ me?"

"We've got scythian dracaena at a lot of schools. We could all sense your power coming from that school; we just didn't know which student you were. Now I'm certain that it's you."

"You mean that you're certain I'm a half-blood?"

"That's right! Ariadne Weaver, daughter of... uh... did Chaos and Lamia ever figure out who your mom was?"

"Who's Lamia?"

"Never mind. Let's just finish the tour first. I'll take you to see her later. She'll want to meet you."

As we walked through the clusters of buildings in the valley, Kaia explained what each of them was. Along with the regular summer camp stuff like an arts and crafts house, basketball court, and archery range, she talked about how there was a forge and man-eating horse stables.

Another thing I learned was that apparently, Kaia was well-known around camp. Random kids kept coming up and speaking in Greek or Latin to her. She would laugh with them and then introduce me. I wasn't usually shy, but a lot of the kids were bigger than me. And I have to admit that the idea of them being half-monster intimidated me until I remembered that I was supposed to be one of them too.

By sunset, names and faces were flying around my head and I could barely keep them all straight. They all looked seemingly normal, but I could tell something was slightly different about them than an average middle school kid. Kaia sometimes mentioned their monster parent, but it all went in one ear and out the other. With each new monster named, I asked myself: _Whose child am I? Who's my monster parent?_

I was feeling particularly dizzy after a large group of giggling girls passed, and Kaia had insisted on them telling me all their names. Of course, I didn't remember a single one of them afterward.

She mentioned that it was about time to go to dinner, and my stomach grumbled.

"Hi Kaia," I heard a deep voice come from behind us. I almost groaned out loud because I really didn't think I could take another name to memorize at the moment.

"Oh, hi Theodore!" Kaia called.

_Theodore? _I swung my head around to look at the new guy.

He was huge. And I mean _huge._ Tall, muscles, calf-brown hair, and round, dark eyes.

"Who's she?" Theodore stepped back a bit, as if he was _afraid_ of me or something. But he was built like an ox! I didn't think he was even capable of being scared of anything. Him being at least six feet tall easily overcame my small 5-foot-2 frame.

Kaia grinned. "Theo, this is _Ariadne_. She's new." She put emphasis on my name.

Theodore's ears turned pink.

"Nice to meet you," I said for the millionth time today.

"Uh... nice to... meet you... too." His voice was soft and quiet, like he was being shy.

"Ari, Theo is a son of the _Minotaur_," Kaia explained.

"Oh... oh!" I realized why Theo must have been blushing. In the myths, Ariadne was the princess who took after the Minotaur before Theseus killed him. "The Minotaur, huh? That's pretty cool."

"Uh... yeah... who's... your parent?"

"You mean my mom? I don't know yet."

"Oh... undetermined..."

"Well," Kaia intervened. "It's almost dinner. Ooo! I know, we can walk together!"

"Uhh..." Theo's eyes flitted around, probably looking for an excuse to not walk with us. Apparently, he didn't find one, because he nodded his head.

So we started walking. In silence

"You know, I have a pet spider named Theodore," I said quickly. I didn't really know where it came from, but it was true. Plus, we _really_ needed something to talk about.

"Really?" Theo asked. He seemed genuinely intrigued.

"Yeah, he's a tarantula. He's really nice."

"Why'd you name him Theodore?"

"I don't know, I guess I just really love that name." The second it was out, I blushed.

"Thanks."

More silence.

"What's wrong with your arm?" he asked me, his shyness fading slowly.

I looked down and remembered my bandage.

"Oh, I was bit."

"By what?"

"Kaia."

Theo grinned.

"Hey! I said sorry like a billion times for that!" Kaia snapped playfully.

"Yeah, yeah, I know," I said.

"But... Kaia is a scythian dracaena; does that mean you were poisoned?"

"Yup. Knocked me out for a few days, too."

"But you _survived?_"

"Yeah." I was tempted to add "duh" to that, but I decided that that would just be plain mean.

"_Aconitum!_" Theo awed. "Literally," he added.

"What does that mean? Somebody else called me that too," I said.

"_Aconitum_ means 'strong poison' in Latin. It's, like, a compliment around here, being monsters and all," Kaia explained.

"Wow, that _is_ literal in my case."

After a while of talking and joking, Kaia informed us that we were here.

We'd been walking a long time, the sun had already set and the stars were coming out.

The dining hall was a long, brick building. There were tall stained glass windows a ways up on the building. From the inside, I could hear chattering and talking and even some clattering that sounded suspiciously like breaking glass.

"KAIA! KAIA!" someone screamed from behind us.

A guy with long black hair came up and grabbed Kaia's arm, trying to pull her away with him.

"What's wrong, Zach? We're already late for dinner," she said, impatiently.

"Another man-eating horse got out! We need your help, right now!"

"Okay, I'll be right there. Theo, look after Ari while I'm gone?"

"Uhh..."

"Good!" She smiled. "See you after dinner!"

She and Zach ran off into the night, shouting after a man-eating horse named _Gumdrop_.

"And then there were two," Theo sighed.

"Gee, isn't a man-eating horse on the loose kinda dangerous?" I asked Theo.

"Oh, they don't eat half-bloods. The monster kind, I mean. They like demigods, though."

"Oh."

"We should probably go in," Theo muttered.

We pushed open the big double-doors together and light from the huge chandeliers that hung from the ceiling washed over us.

* * *

**Hello again, everyone! I would just like to inform you that the 400th reviewer was Bookworm1756! Thank you to all the lovely reviewers, flames or not!**

**Have a wonderful day, and I'll see you tomorrow!**

**~Divide /0**


	3. Chapter 3

**Saturday, June 15th, 2013 - No flames this time!**

**Here I am, back again to bug you with your daily dosage of PJO fanfic. I only have a couple of guest reviewers to answer, and then you can all get to reading!**

**To Epithet2: Hello again! And, it's okay, I like long reviews! Actually, any reviews are good. Thank you!**

**To PhantomWhispers: Yes, you definitely need an award! The Divide-Can't-Think-Up-A-Good-Award-Name Award. Thanks so much for the support, my friend!**

**Enjoy your third chapter!**

* * *

For the first time, I asked myself the question: Where was I gonna sit? I hadn't experienced this much cafeteria fringe since the first day of middle school. When I came here for dinner, I figured I'd just sit by Kaia and her numerous amounts of friends. But Kaia wasn't here right now.

"Hey, Poison-Girl! Come sit over here with me!" I looked for the owner of the voice that had called my nickname. _What is with that name he gave me, anyway?_ I asked myself.

It was Ruin, the dark haired guy with the strange gold eyes. Before, I had met him alone and thought he was kind of strange, even by half-blood standards. But now, he was surrounded by a bunch of giggling, chattering girls. Ugh.

He waved his hand for me to come over and sit with him, and I could tell that he really wanted me to. But, surprisingly, I found myself shaking my head and mouthing the words "_No thanks."_

I swept my gaze around and saw another person waving at me. He wore a black hoodie and glasses. Chaos. He wordlessly nodded his head to a seat across from him. The other people he sat with were much less flashy than Ruin's company. They all dressed similarly, with hoodies- mostly black -and glasses. Not my crowd.

Theo nudged me. "You could sit with us," he suggested.

I nodded, following him soundlessly to a table with more huge kids that all looked startlingly like Theo. I had no doubt that they were his brothers and sisters.

They all had the same round eyes and square shoulders, but let me tell you this: Theo was _small_ compared to these kids.

While Theo was shy and slight, his siblings were more of what I thought a stereotypical child-of-the-Minotaur would act like. They were loud and big and looked like they would bash their heads together in their spare time. They spoke mostly in grunts as they shoveled food into their mouths.

Theo and I sat on the far side of the long table, near the wall. I looked up at the stained glass above us. It depicted a scene of a boy in a white tunic; at his feet lay a dead bull. Or a man. I really couldn't tell, until I realized it must be the Minotaur. The hero in white must be Theseus. In the background, a girl with long black hair stood holding a spool of red yarn. Ariadne.

"You look like her, you know." Theo must've caught me staring. He must've meant Ariadne, the princess.

"I guess," I admitted. "So, is this your table? For the children of the Minotaur?"

"Not officially. Anyone can sit anywhere, but it's become a sort of custom to sit underneath your parent's window," he explained.

"Oh." I glanced around the room. The other stained glass windows told beautiful stories about the other famous monsters in Greek mythology. I spotted one of beautiful women singing on an island to brain-washed sailors. The Sirens.

Another showed a group of strange-looking vampire women. They appeared to have mismatched legs; one looked almost bronze, the other was hooved, like a donkey's.

There were more, too, but I could barely soak it all in before a platter of food appeared out of thin air next to us. Theo didn't hesitate before snatching up a slice of pizza from the plate.

"Help yourself," he said.

I took a piece and laid it on my plate.

"Go ahead and eat," Theo urged.

"Oh, sorry, it's just; I've already been poisoned once this week."

Theo laughed out loud, which brought concerned glances from his siblings, and took a bite of his own pizza. "See, no worries."

I laughed and nodded, I was being too paranoid. That is, until a plate of _crickets_ appeared next to us.

I blushed deep red.

Theo smiled. "Don't worry," he reassured. "Lots of kids here eat bugs."

"Really?" I asked hopefully.

"Yup." He scooped some of the bugs onto his plate and started eating. "It's kind of a monster thing."

"This place is awesome," I said, not really meaning for it to come out out-loud.

Theo laughed again. He seemed to have come out of his shell and was being less shy.

"So, Kaia was telling me about demigods earlier. She seems to really hate them."

"Yeah, I guess we all do. A natural grudge, I suppose, killing our monster parents and all."

"That's a good reason to hate someone. Have you ever met your dad?"

"Nope. A lot of kids here haven't."

"Wow, I bet demigods get to meet their parents. Being gods and all, you'd think they'd have all the time in the world to visit them."

"I bet."

"So, where _are_ all the demigods?"

"They have some camp somewhere, just like ours. Two actually, one for Greek demigods and one for Romans."

"There's a difference?"

Theo shrugged.

"So, is this camp for only half _Greek_ monsters, or what?"

"I guess you could say it's for both. The monsters are pretty much the same in each culture, so it doesn't matter so much like with the gods, who are really different. We mix the two together a lot, speaking both ancient Greek and Latin. Stuff like that."

"That's interesting," I said, taking another bite of pepperoni-and-cricket pizza.

Another Minotaur kid, one of Theo's brothers, turned to us. "Hey, Theo, who's the girl?"

"This is Ariadne," Theo said. "Undetermined," he added.

His brother grunted in approval, and went back to his food.

"What's undetermined mean?" I asked Theo.

"It means you don't know who your parent is. Your monster parent, I mean."

"Oh. So, who's your mortal parent? If you don't mind me asking."

"Oh, my mom? She died."

"Oh, sorry."

"That's okay. It was just a car crash, when I was younger. A half-blood's luck, huh?"

"I guess."

"How about your dad? He's alive, right?"

"Yeah. He's a professor. Dr. Gabriel Weaver."

"What's he teach?"

"Entomology. Bugs."

"Cool. Is that why you have a pet spider?"

"Part of it, but I've always been into spiders. I think they're so cool. By the way... I was gonna ask Kaia about this, but maybe you could help me."

"Yeah?"

"Before, I thought I was going insane, but now I think it might just be a half-blood thing. Is it normal if a spider talks to you?"

"Wha-?" he started, only to be cut off by a thundering voice at the front of the hall.

"Good evening, campers!"

The speaker was met with cheers and shouts and fists banging on tables.

"That's Lamia," Theo explained quickly. "She's the camp director."

"Oh." I strained my neck to see over campers to get a glimpse of her.

"Tonight we have a few _special_ announcements to make. First, paintball is still on for next Saturday night-"

Before she could continue, cheers erupted from the campers.

"As always, teams will be Bulls versus Snakes."

That brought up jeers and taunts from each side of the room, especially from the bigger, rowdier Minotaur kids. And that brought equally heavy responses from the other side of the room.

I didn't know people could get so worked up about paintball.

"Enough!" Lamia shouted, her voice bouncing around the room. It only took that one word from her to quiet them all down. I could tell they really respected her. "Let's save the fighting for Saturday. Anyway, like I was saying, there is another big announcement for tonight," she continued, cheerfully.

Campers all around whispered to each other. Some pointed my way. "Poison-Girl," I heard some of them say in hushed voices.

"Yes, I'm sure you've heard. We have a new camper with us! She's actually been in the sick bay for a few days; we can thank Kaia for that."

Everybody laughed.

"Come on up, _Poison-Girl_."

For a second or two, I was frozen in place. I wasn't expecting her to call me up to introduce myself. And even _she_ knew my nickname? Word must spread fast around here.

"Ariadne," Theo whispered.

I suddenly stood up and soundlessly moved to the front of the room. I subconsciously tucked my hair behind my ear and straightened my shirt. It was absolutely silent and even without looking; I knew that all eyes were on me.

When I finally reached the front, I realized that there was a small stage I hadn't noticed before. I got my first good look at Lamia. She was obviously a snake-woman, like Kaia, but instead of having two snake bodies for legs, she only had one. She appeared younger than I imagined her to be, maybe in her thirties. Something told me she was actually much older than that though.

Despite the fangs, she had a kind smile. It gave me courage to climb the steps to the stage. I looked out on all the other campers. I scanned the crowd and found a few familiar faces, but Kaia still wasn't back yet.

"Okay, well, we all know your new nickname. But, what's your _real_ name?" she asked simply.

Her voice made me feel like she was speaking just to me, without the extra crowd sitting and watching us. It made me feel less afraid.

"I'm Ariadne Weaver."

Polite clapping sounded from the campers. Were these really the same people who had been shouting insults at each other just a minute ago?

"Regular or undetermined!?" someone called from the crowd.

Lamia was about to say something, but I answered for myself. "Undetermined."

A few campers groaned, but most just nodded with approval.

Lamia clapped her hands together. "Okay then, you all know the way things work from here on out. But for Ariadne's sake, and for anyone who has had _trouble_ remembering the rules in the past, I'll explain again." She eyed a few mischievous-looking campers and cleared her throat. "To follow our Latin roots, we do things by the Roman rules here. Because Ariadne has not yet been claimed, she will be _probatio_ until she proves herself to the camp or is claimed. Until then, someone must represent Ariadne.

"As Ariadne's representative, you will be _responsible_ for her. Anything she does wrong, you will also be punished for. If she is chosen to lead a quest, you must go with her. Anyone can volunteer; a camper, a dracaena, anybody. But keep in mind that only one person can represent her. Who wishes to represent Ariadne Weaver?"

Silence. Not a single person.

Not a single freaking person stood up to represent me.

_Do I really look that much like a trouble maker? Do people not trust me? _I thought. _There had to be someone out there! Out of all the kids that Kaia introduced me to today, isn't there anybody?_

I wished Kaia were there. She would've volunteered to represent me.

My stomach lurched as I scanned the crowd. Everybody just looked at me with sad eyes, while I mentally screamed at them that if they were so sad, why didn't they do something about it?

Just as I was about to run off the stage screaming, someone stood up.

No... not just some_one_. _Three_ people stood up.

"I, Ruin Carter, volunteer to represent Poison-Girl."

"I, Chaos Shepherd, volunteer to represent Ariadne Weaver."

"I, Theodore Reed, volunteer to represent Ari."

All three of them said it at the exact same.

After that, it was even _quieter_ than before. If that was even possible.

"Uh..." Even Lamia seemed dumbstruck. "We've... never had _this_ happen before..."

"Who said it first?" a camper asked.

"Theodore, I think."

"No way, it was Ruin!"

"Nuh-uh! Chaos Shepherd, clear as a bell."

The whole crowd broke into small arguments. My ears turned pink and I eyed the three boys who had stood up to volunteer. Theo, cowering in the corner, dark eyes shifting, blushing chin to hairline. Ruin, with his messy dark hair and bright golden eyes, smirking up at me from his flock of giggling companions. And Chaos, with his hood still up and his glasses still on, slouching among his hoodie-clad friends.

"Everyone quiet down!" Lamia yelled. "Because we cannot seem to agree on who volunteered first, we will let _all three of you_ represent her."

This made more confusion arise from the crowd.

People started asked questions like: "Whose lodge will she stay in until she's claimed?"

Or... "What will happen if she gets in trouble? Will they all be punished?"

And, most importantly... "Whose team will she be on for paintball!?"

"Fine! You four! Come with me," Lamia ordered.

I followed her offstage while the campers continued to debate about what we should do about the situation. She led us all out a side entrance and we grouped behind the dining building.

Lamia sized us up and sighed.

"But Lamia, we've had this happen before, right?" Ruin broke in. "There were a bunch of people who volunteered for me."

Chaos's eyebrows raised and I could tell he was rolling his eyes underneath his glasses.

"Yes, but then it was apparent who announced it first," Lamia answered.

"Can't I just _choose_?" I asked.

"Sorry Ariadne, that's not how it works. Someone has to volunteer for you. It's tradition," Chaos explained, patiently.

"Oh."

"As far as I could tell, Ruin said the pledge first-"

"YESSS!" Ruin cut Lamia off.

"But Chaos was the only one to say Ariadne's full and proper name," she continued.

Ruin huffed. Chaos smiled just a bit.

"But, Ariadne, dear. Who would be _your_ first choice, if you _had_ to pick one?" Lamia asked.

"Theo," I said, without hesitating.

Ruin groaned.

"Shut up, Ruin," Chaos mumbled.

"Hey, I was just trying to make sure she didn't end up in the Minotaur's lodge. No need to thank me or anything," Ruin added sarcastically.

"That's so selfish."

"Is not! If anything, I was _helping_ her."

"Stop it," Theo piped up. He had been fidgety and silent until now. "Why does she even have to have a representative? As long as she doesn't get in trouble and doesn't go on any quests, why does she even need one?"

"Good point, Theodore. But we need to decide Ariadne's living arrangements until she is claimed."

"Living arrangements?" I asked.

"There are two lodges," Chaos said. "One for the children of more humanoid monsters, like the Sirens or Medusa. The other lodge is for more... _creature-like _half-bloods." I could tell he was trying to put it nicely.

"Like the Minotaur," Ruin sneered.

"Shut up!" I snapped, regretting it barely seconds afterward. My ears turned red.

I didn't know where it came from... it was like a natural reaction. Like when people made fun of Kaia's hiss at school, it was just like an instinct to snap back at them. I didn't know why I felt the need to defend Theo though.

My words hung in the air for a second or two until Lamia spoke up.

"Theo brings up a good point, it isn't _absolutely_ necessary for Ariadne to have a representative at this point," she explained, obviously ignoring my comment. "Just stay out of trouble and we won't need one." She smiled to me, almost apologetically. "Which lodge would you like to stay in for the time being?"

"Uh..." I hesitated.

I glanced around. Ruin looked bored and annoyed. Theo kept tugging at locks of his hair, subconsciously.

"Chaos's, I guess..." I decided.

The corners of Chaos's mouth quirked up in victory.

...

"So, you all live in one big lodge?" I asked as we walked among some people that Chaos had explained were his siblings.

"Yup," one of the girls said.

She came up and I noticed she was one of the few kids with us that didn't wear sunglasses. She had huge eyes and really dark hair, and seemed maybe a year or two older than me. She looked like she was at least half Asian. The only thing that interrupted her appearance was a long scar that ran down the side of her cheek and disappeared into her shirt in back.

"Oh, don't let the scar scare you. I'm Elise, by the way." She held out her hand. I shook it, and she smiled. And she had _fangs._ Not as long as Kaia's or Lamia's, but her canine teeth definitely stuck out more than an average person's.

"Nice teeth," I smiled back. "I wish I had cool fangs like you."

"Wow, that's a first! Someone who actually _wants_ to be a snake-head?" Everyone around us laughed.

"What's a snake-head?" I asked, to no one in particular.

"Gee Poison-Girl, haven't you guessed already?" another sister piped up.

I thought for just a second, running through the names of famous Greek monsters. When I finally remembered the myth, I became suddenly wary of the potential power surrounding me.

"Medusa?" I squeaked.

"Ding ding ding! Correct!" Elise cheered.

"I can't believe I didn't figure that out before."

"It's okay, you're new." The others nodded in agreement.

"So, can you... you know..."

"Turn people to stone?"

"Yeah..."

"Some of us can," Elise explained. "Danae, right? And Chaos, I think."

"Really Chaos?" I turned around to look at him.

He shrugged.

"So_ that's_ why you wear the glasses." I still felt dumb for not thinking of Medusa before.

"Of course, most of us can do it if our heart rates get high enough," explained a brother. "We only have to wear goggles when we're playing paintball or at combat practice."

"Lucky," I heard Chaos mutter, but I ignored it.

"Welcome to the Dimidium Domus," Elise announced suddenly.

I stopped and looked up at the huge building. I had seen it from a distance, outside the sick bay, but it looked even bigger up close. The porch had marble pillars and the doorway had carvings in Greek and Latin etched around it.

"Whoa," I awed.

"Yeah! A lot better than the Minotaur's shack, am I right!?" Ruin's obnoxious voice sounded from next to me.

He sauntered past us and into the lodge.

"Watch out Ruin, you'll trip over your own ego," a camper mumbled.

"No way, he lives here?" I hissed to Elise.

"What did you expect? He's a son of a Siren," she replied.

"Oh, so that's why-"

I was interrupted by a herd of girls swooning after Ruin.

"Exactly," Elise said slyly.

"Makes me sick," Chaos stated, arms crossed.

"Oh, calm down little brother," Elise teased.

We all entered the lodge and made our way through the maze of bunk beds.

The walls were mostly blank, aside from the occasional picture or poster on the space behind a camper's bunk.

I followed Elise into the very back. She said that the girls had the second floor, but everyone kind of hung out on the ground floor until lights out. Someone cranked up a stereo somewhere and blasted music throughout the lodge. After that, it became one big party.

Of course, me being the new girl, was the center of attention. Everybody kept came coming up and asking me to show them my arm. I would unwrap my arm, totally gross them out, wrap it back up sloppily; just to have it unwrapped again minutes later to show more fellow campers.

Towards the end of the celebration, Ruin and some girls got up on a makeshift stage of bunk beds and cardboard. A popular song came on and Ruin started singing the main part. At first he was completely off-key, but later, his voice was like an angel's. The girls started singing backup and they harmonized perfectly.

The background voices died down to watch Ruin. He was seriously good. He put everyone in a trance, even me. I guess that's what the Sirens did in the stories; they put the sailors in trances and ate them. That particular fact made me snap out of the trance.

After he was done, everyone cheered.

He hopped down from the stage and crossed over to a group of girls chanting his name.

"Need help with that?"

I turned around. I was totally taken aback by the guy standing behind me.

"_Chaos_? Is that _you_?" I asked in awe.

"What? Of course it's me."

"But... your hoodie..."

In fact, Chaos stood before my very eyes wearing only a t-shirt, jeans, and sunglasses. I was surprised at how different he looked.

"Oh, yeah."

"Uh..." I shook my head and tried not to focus his high cheekbones and jawline that I could now see clearly because they weren't covered up by his hood. "You wanted to help with something?"

"Your arm. Did the bandage come loose?"

"Oh. Yeah. Everyone wanted to see it." I held out my arm to him. "I guess I didn't do a very good job fixing it. Could you...?"

He chuckled. "No problem."

I watched his strong hands go back and forth, weaving the strip of cloth around my arm. So there he was, wrapping up my arm, and all I could say was, "You're _blond_?"

He laughed. "What did you expect? Snakes?"

I looked up at his short cropped, corn silk hair. "I don't know, maybe. I guess whenever you came to mind, I always pictured you with your hood up."

He looked up and grinned at me. "Do I come to your mind often, Poison-Girl?"

I smiled nervously. When he was done, he took my hand and tucked the end of the bandage into my wrist.

He coughed and let go of my hand. "See you tomorrow, I guess."

"Yeah. Tomorrow."

"Well, goodnight."

"Goodnight."

Without another word, I turned and followed the other girls upstairs to the second floor.

* * *

**Well damn, if that ain't gonna get the shippers riled up I don't know what will. But just so you know, I really don't want romance to be a big thing in this story, not right away, at least. Please don't try to discuss love triangles with me, I'm not good at writing sappy dramatic stuff anyway.**

**By the way, I'm glad that you all like the new characters so much!**

**Thanks for reading! Please review!**

**~Divide /0**


	4. Chapter 4

**Sunday, June 16th, 2013 - Basement inspiration**

**Guess what! I cleaned out my basement so now I don't have to suffer my hot Wisconsin summers in my equally hot bedroom. My basement is actually quite a good writing area; plenty of space, and my brother doesn't bother me because he's afraid of the spiders down here! Maybe I could get Ariadne to take care of that...**

**Anyway, here's your fourth chapter!**

* * *

That night, I dreamed that I was at a summer camp. Not Camp Echidna, a different one.

A single majestic pine tree stood upright on a hill. There was a beautiful strawberry field off to the right. Kids of all ages ran around, having fun. There were these weird goat-men mixed in with the campers in orange t-shirts.

I caught sight of a girl with curly blond hair. Her orange t-shirt read: "Camp Half-Blood" I realized this must be one of the demigod camps.

"Hey!" the blond girl called.

"What is it Wise-Girl?" a boy with sea-green eyes answered her.

"You're on my team for capture the flag, right?"

"Whatever you say. Hey, did Chiron tell you about the mission?"

Wise-Girl's voice dropped to a low whisper. "You're not supposed to talk about that here!" she hissed.

"Oh. Sorry!" The boy smiled, like he didn't care much. "So, did he?"

"Of course he did."

"So, do you know why we're doing it in the first place?

"Honestly Seaweed-Brain! Don't you pay any attention?"

Seaweed-Brain shook his head, grinning like an idiot.

"We're going to Miami because the Mist is-"

...

"Ariadne! Wake up, Poison-Girl!"

"Ugh. Wha-?" I wiped the sleep away from my eyes and tried to remember where I was.

"Come on girl! Combat practice!" Elise announced.

_Combat practice?_

I tried rolling over, but the blankets got tangled up in my shirt. I had slept in my clothes because I didn't have any spare pajamas.

"Lemme go back to sleep," I said groggily, plopping my face back onto the pillow.

"Chaos is looking for you," she whispered in my ear.

I sat straight up in bed, hitting my head on the bunk above me.

All the girls standing around me burst out laughing.

"Ow!" I yelped, clutching my head.

"You shoulda seen your face light up!" another snake-head said. "First day at camp and you've already got a cru-"

"No I don't!" I shouted. I couldn't help but smile. "I was just surprised, that's all."

"Oh yeah? _Really_?"

"Really!"

"Ariadne, dear, do you need us to describe the scene that unraveled last night?"

"I don't care!"

_Knock. Knock. Knock._ "Ariadne!" someone called.

The girls darted their eyes to the door at the end of the room that led to the staircase to downstairs. It opened to reveal Chaos.

"She's not even up yet? Come on, Ariadne. If you're gonna be on our team for paintball next Saturday, we gotta get you to the arena! Let's go."

"What? That's in like a week!"

Chaos marched right over to me and tore of the blankets. He grabbed my arms, picked me up, and threw me over his shoulder.

I screamed and the girls around us squealed. He carried me over to a window and threw up the glass pane.

"Elise! Help!" I choked out.

"Not in a million years, Poison-Girl!" she replied.

"Does he do this to everyone new!?" I said before he shoved me out the window.

As we slid down the old-fashioned Roman tile roof, Elise and the other girls crowded around the window.

"Nope! Just you!" Elise called down to us.

We rolled head over heels down and off the edge. For seconds, we were just free falling. It was like gravity still worked on the outside, but my guts had been left up on the roof.

I didn't hit the ground that hard. That is, until I realized I fell on top of Chaos.

"Chaos!" I jumped up and laughter sounded from around us. "What was that for!?"

He sat up and cracked his neck. "Woke you up, didn't it?"

I hesitated. And then burst out laughing. He chuckled with me.

"Yeah, it did wake me up. You know what? That was freaking awesome!" I grabbed his shoulders. "Let's do that again!"

"No way, we're going to combat practice!"

He took me through camp, allowing me to grab a bagel from the dining hall. It was a beautiful day. Sunlight, cloudless sky, a light breeze. Absolutely gorgeous.

"So, what's next on the schedule?" I asked.

"No schedule. This _is_ Camp Echidna, after all."

"Why not? Don't _other_ camps have schedules?"

"Exactly! We're tons more fun than Camp Half-Blood and Camp Jupiter. That reminds me about something... just a sec."

There it was._ Camp Half-Blood_. I wondered if I should tell him about my dream. I'd heard somewhere that you can't dream of strangers, so if I had never met those two demigods before, did that mean it wasn't a dream? Maybe it was real. But even if it was, what did it mean? Who was Chiron? Were Wise-Girl and Seaweed-Brain code names or something?

"Ari, what are you looking at?"

I refocused my vision and realized I had been staring at Chaos's face while I was spacing out.

"Oh, sorry. Just thinking about stuff."

"Okay then, here you go!" He held out a bundle of something colored neon green.

I took it in both hands and unraveled it. It was a t-shirt. In big, blocky lettering on the front, it said: "Camp Echidna."

"Oh my god!" I awed. "-s," I added. "This is so awesome!"

I slipped the new camp shirt over my head.

"Does it fit okay?" Chaos asked.

"Yup!" I smiled and looked down on my new favorite t-shirt.

"You done with your breakfast?"

I nodded.

"Okay, good. Combat time! Come on, we're almost late," he said, and took off.

"Hey, I thought you said there wasn't a schedule!" I shouted, running after him.

"That doesn't mean we're not organized."

I laughed as he led me into a huge, round building. The inside reminded me disturbingly of a school gymnasium. The floor was the same with wooden bleachers lining the walls. There were colored tapes on the ground crisscrossing and circling to form mini arenas.

But I could tell this was no school gym.

There were dummies placed around the arena for target practice. Kids were shredding them to ribbons with knives and swords. There were also random boxes and walls around, for hiding behind and for sniping over with bows. Along one wall, there were tables with lots of weapons adorning them.

"Whoa." I ran my finger along the blade of a dagger.

"I know, right?" said a familiar voice.

"Hey Kaia!" I said, turning to face her.

"Hey Ari. Miss me much? Sorry about last night. Gumdrop didn't want to go back in the corral."

"That's okay," I explained. "I made some new friends."

"Oh yeah, I witnessed your little tumble this morning." She grinned.

I laughed. "Oh yeah! That was awesome. I wanna do that again sometime soon."

"Only if you invite me next time."

"Definitely!" I promised. "What are you doing here?"

"Came to watch you get beat up by Chaos, duh!"

We both laughed. Only, I didn't know if she was actually joking or not. Just then, some Medusa kids walked in. Elise was among them.

"Hey guys. You recover from your fall?" She fought to hold back laughter.

"Shut up." But I smiled back.

"Whatever. Let's get you trained, Poison-Girl!"

"Don't forget these, Elise." Chaos pushed a pair of goggles into Elise's hands.

"Thanks bro." She slipped them on over her head. They were the kind that reflected, like little mirrors. I could see my own small frame in the goggles.

"What are those for?" I asked her.

"Just in case," she answered.

"Just in case of _what_?"

"Code red," she said. "If a code red is called, you gotta close your eyes quick."

"But-"

"No buts. That's what a code red is all about."

I shrugged. "Okay, so what else do I need to know?"

"You got the usual anger management issues, right? Well, we all do too. Rule one: Don't get people mad. They'll kill you. Rule two: Don't let other people get you mad. You'll kill them. Simple as that. Got it?"

"Okay," I confirmed.

"Good, now go beat up my little brother for me."

"Will do!" I saluted.

I sauntered over to where Chaos had wandered off to.

"What will you teach me?" I asked him, eagerly.

He glanced around, like he did this every day; and then I realized he probably did. "Mm... you pick," he said.

Campers had started to disperse to stations around the gym. Some went towards the tables lined with knives and swords and other various blades and weapons. Others wandered off to a small area set up for target practice for bows and crossbows.

"M'kay..." I searched around for a good station. I liked the looks of those daggers... but when I saw Ruin hacking a dummy to shreds nearby, I gravitated towards the other side of the gym.

I picked up a gun from a long wooden table. It was heavier than I'd expect it to be. It was just a simple handgun, a pistol that looked pretty standard, like ones in movies. I'd never seen a gun up close before, but I'd always wanted to. I'm sure it's harder than they make it seem... but still, I would look so badass firing a gun, I could just picture it.

"Calm down, it's just a paintball gun, no need to get so excited." Chaos grinned at me.

"Oh yeah? Looks pretty real to me," I said.

"It's supposed to be like that."

"Well then," I said. I raised the gun to his chest and before he even realized what was happening, he had a blob of bright yellow paint on his jacket.

"You are so going to pay for that," he declared, snatching up a rifle from a rack, smiling.

I ducked and rolled on the ground, dodging his shot. Chaos ran after me but I darted away.

"Damn!" someone cheered as I ran by. "You move fast, Poison-Girl!"

I realized the camper was right. I was way out in front of Chaos. But what good would it do me if he had a _gun?_

Something splattered against my calf, below my knee. I looked down and almost panicked because where the pellet had hit me; there was a stain of red. When I realized it was just red paint, I started running again. I tried to fire over my shoulder, and found out I was right: It _does_ look easier in the movies. I pretty much tripped over air. My wrist had also gotten wrenched back from the slight recoil on the gun. Ouch. I felt like an idiot as I stumbled to the ground. I peeled my face off the floor. At least when Chaos came over and asked if I was okay, he sounded sincere.

"I'm okay. I'm just clumsy." I laughed out loud, suddenly trying to imagine how comical I had looked falling over.

"It's okay that you're not good at it the first time. Just remember that you can't run from a gunfight." He helped me up and took my pistol, demonstrating. "I think the best technique you could use, because you're so small and quick, would be to get up in your opponents face about it. Guns aren't good for close combat, and that seems to be what you'd be good at."

I nodded. "Can I try it on you?"

"Sure, but I wouldn't be a very fair opponent."

"Oh yeah? Why's that?"

He put his hands on his waist and puffed out his chest. "Guns are sorta my thing."

"Really?"

"Yup, I'm the camp's paintball champion."

I looked him up and down. It was true; Chaos looked almost _natural_ carrying that pistol. It was like he was born with one in his hand.

"So what's _my_ thing? What am _I_ good at?" I asked. I would probably never admit it, but I longed to be able to look that natural holding a gun, or a knife, or a sword. I wanted to appear at ease, like Chaos, even when wielding a deadly weapon.

"I don't know. I guess that's what we're here to find out, isn't it?"

"So where do we start looking?" I asked Chaos.

He scanned the room, eyeing the stations with bows and arrows; then he shook his head.

"Nah, no long range stuff for you." He led me over to an entirely different table and held out something in his hand to me.

"What is that?" I questioned.

"The paintball equivalent of a knife. Magic marker."

"You're kidding."

"Nope. You wanna be purple or green?"

"Mm... purple," I decided.

He handed me a Crayola felt-tip marker and uncapped his own.

"Okay," he said, assuming a fighting stance that I quickly copied. "First thing to learn about bladed weapons is how to dodge. Others might argue that to defend is the first thing, but what good is defense without dodging?"

I nodded in agreement.

"So, to dodge, you gotta be quick."

I swung my head down, missing his blow.

"Wow, you're a fast learner, Ariadne."

Almost instantly, he jabbed with his marker at my stomach. I leaped back and then dove, lunging towards him. I stabbed him in the gut with the magic marker.

"Okay, you got me," he admitted.

I braced myself for another attack, but none came.

"What's next?" I asked.

"Defense... but... I think you're clever enough to figure that out on your own..." He looked at me and sized me up. I did the same to him. He was much taller than me, and he definitely had lots more training than me. But I was small and quick. I was flexible and could duck and dodge and lunge.

"Let's just go right on to attack then," I said, excitedly. I was proving to be quite good at this close combat stuff.

"Okay," he agreed.

He lashed out with no warning. This time, I was totally not expecting it. He slashed a long green line down my cheek.

"What was that for!?" I straightened up and tried to wipe off the green from my face.

Chaos laughed. "I can't teach you attacking skills. You learn them yourself in actual combat. Everyone has their own style of fighting. It might not work for regular humans, but your monster blood will help you. Anyone who tries to learn fighting from someone else just ends up feeling off-balance and vulnerable. You have to figure yours out by yourself."

"Oh yeah?" I taunted, suddenly on edge. I started circling him, marker in hand.

"Yeah." He echoed my stance.

"Then, what kind of styles are there?" I kept circling him.

"Oh, there's a lot. Aggressive, defensive, acrobatic, stealthy." He kept circling me.

"Then which one are you?" I asked with mock innocence.

"Ah, see, but that's part of learning to fight. If you come up with your own fighting style, no one knows your weak points. No one can beat you with logic. It comes down to sheer skill after that."

"Are you saying that I have no skills?"

"Prove. Me. Wrong." He grinned.

I lunged and jabbed at his gut again. He deflected it with his arm and pushed me back with a strong shoulder. He pulled away and as he did, made another mark down my cheek.

I cursed and lunged again. But this time, I faked it. Instead of going for the gut, I jumped over his shoulder as he tried to copy the same move he had done before. My foot caught him on the cheek and I did a somersault over his back. Landing on my feet behind him, I twirled around and slashed a long mark of purple down his back.

He turned around. He looked stunned, but quickly recovered, stabbing the marker towards my shoulder. I ducked down and spun, sticking out my foot to kick his legs out from underneath him.

He had landed backwards, so I was standing near his feet. He kicked his own legs at me, but I jumped off the ground and landed by his side, neatly. I could've pinned him then, but I wanted the fight to last. I was having a genuinely good time. Not to mention the small crowd forming around us to watch.

Chaos jumped up, ready for another strike. He swung with his right hand, and would've clipped me on the side of my face if I hadn't ducked and rolled under his arm. I was behind him once again, and decided to finish it.

I tackled him, piggy-back style, and slit his throat...

...with a magic marker.

"Good match, Poison-Girl. I guess you're not great with the long range stuff, but knives on the other hand... I'd say you should stick with daggers for now. Not a lot of people can pull off short-bladed weapons, but you're small enough. It takes a lot skill and courage to be able to get up in your opponent's face to fight."

I was taken aback by his comment. "Did you just call me short?"

"It was meant to be a compliment."

"Okay then..." I hesitated, expecting another taunt or joke. None came. "Thanks, I guess."

"We should get you some blades, Poison-Girl." Kaia, who must've been watching the whole thing, came over suddenly and took my arm, leading me over to the table of knives. She planted me in front of the table and started bringing over different styles of knives and swords. She started placing the belts and scabbards before me. I examined each one with as much care as I could before Kaia snatched them away again, coming up with an excuse for it to not be good enough for me. Too long, too thin, too short, blah blah blah.

One thing that all the daggers had in common was that the blades were made out of the same black metal.

"What are these _made_ of?" I asked.

Chaos had joined us in search of my perfect knife. "Typhonian lead. Not to be confused with Stygian iron, of course. Makes great bullets, too."

"Wait." I stopped Kaia's frantic shuffling. I reached out and took hold of a small, leather-wrapped handle. I pulled it from the pile. It was connected to a long cord, which was tied to another dagger's sheath. I guessed that it was a set. I unsheathed one and saw it was made of the same material as the others. The blade was thin and only about eight inches long, and its twin on the other end of the cord was identical in shape and material. They were both serrated at near the hilt, but other than that, they weren't flashy or particularly intimidating, and didn't appear to be anything special at all.

"Perfect," I whispered, almost to myself. I undid the cord as Chaos and Kaia watched me intently. I threaded the line through my belt loops and tied it in the front again. It fit snugly.

...

That night, all the snake-heads had dinner together. Even Kaia came to join us. Chaos, Elise, and a bunch of other hooded kids all sat together at the table under Medusa's window. Her stained glass scene depicted Medusa herself walking through a garden filled with stone statues. They were probably people she'd turned to stone herself.

For a second, I wondered why Medusa had this lovely scene for her children to eat under, while the Minotaur was only recognized for his death, by Theseus's hand. It seemed like something the _demigods_ would be proud of. I thought about Camp Half-Blood. Did _they_ haves scenes like this in their dining hall, showing the god's great achievements?

"Hey, I've been meaning to ask, where are the demigod camps?" I asked, trying not to sound suspicious.

"No one knows. Lamia refuses to tell anybody," Elise explained.

"What's her deal, then? Who's she in the Greek stories?" In the back of my mind, I seemed to remember having learned about a snake woman named Lamia.

Everyone suddenly grew cold and distant, like the temperature dropped several degrees.

"Okay, what'd I say?" I asked with wide eyes.

"Nothing, it's just..." Kaia trailed off.

"Lamia's past is somewhat questionable," Chaos continued for her. "They say that she used to be a queen somewhere. Libya, I think. She's Hecate's daughter, you know, the goddess of magic? Anyway, Hera cursed her and forced her to eat her own children. That's when she grew the snake tail and the..."

"What?" I was on the edge of my seat, waiting for Chaos to finish his story.

"She can remove her own eyeballs," Chaos sputtered. "She says that when she does it, only then can she see clearly."

"What does that-?"

I was cut off my Lamia herself, on stage, rattling off announcements about weather and other camp notices. "...and, riding lessons are available tomorrow from eight o'clock to noon..." Stuff like that. I kind of tuned it out.

I glanced back at Chaos and the others. They sat, silent and obedient, watching Lamia speak. Did they really respect her that much? I mean, she had that kind smile and all... but maybe they were only acting respectful because they were afraid?

When she was done, she let us go back to eating.

"So... so you guys, like, not like her?" I asked timidly.

"No, of course we do!" Kaia assured me. "It's not like that. We love her here. Lamia's whole purpose here is to make up for her _mistake_. If that's what you'd call it."

"But, it's not her fault. Hera cursed her," I protested. I was glad Lamia wasn't anybody to be afraid of, but why would Hera be so mad at her?

"Well then, tell that to the gods, because that's what us campers have been trying to tell Lamia ever since forever. But she just keeps saying 'It was a fair punishment, if anything, I got the better hand, blah blah blah.' I wish she'd just get mad at the gods like the rest of us do." Kaia stuffed some crickets into her mouth.

"Wait, ever since forever? Do you actually mean-?" I trailed off.

"Forever? Eternity? Infinity? Yep. She's immortal; it's another part of the curse that Hera put on her."

"I'd think immortality is a pretty good deal," I said.

"Not if you'd have to spend every waking hour surrounded by kids, constantly reminding you of your own children," Elise whispered.

"Oh." I suddenly realized how horrible it must be for her. "But why did the gods send her here? I mean, I would think that the gods would do anything to blow this place up, right?"

"They don't know where _this place_ is. They know there's a camp for us somewhere, but they try to ignore us. We're not so much of a threat against them," Kaia explained. "We're kind of like a compromise between the gods and monsters."

After a few moments of silence, I spoke up again: "If Lamia's been here since eternity, then how long have you all been here?" I looked around the table at Chaos, Elise, and the other snake-heads.

Most of them mumbled "a couple years" or something like that. It was only Chaos who gave me a direct answer: "Nine years."

"_Nine years?_" I asked, astonished.

"Yep," he stated proudly. "Ever since I was six years old. I could barely hold a sword back then." He put his head in his hand and stared at the ceiling nostalgically.

I did the math in my head. "Fifteen years old," I mumbled. I blushed immediately. I hadn't meant for it to come out of my mouth.

"Yeah, fifteen. How about you, Ariadne? Fourteen, right?"

"In a couple weeks," I said, nodding.

"Cool. On a random note, are you excited for paintball next week?"

"Oh yeah, definitely!" I said, eager to change the subject. "Snakes versus Bulls, right? I guess that means we'll be against Theo."

"Theo?" Chaos asked. "You mean Theodore? The Minotaur guy?"

"Yeah, that's him." I silently hoped that Chaos wasn't mean to the Minotaur kids like Ruin was. "What about him?" I asked.

"Oh nothing. I don't really know him that well."

"You should. He's really... really..."

"Nice?"

"Not exactly," I said. "More like..." I tried to think of the right word for Theo's personality.

"Theodore? Killed his own mother, that's what I think," a horribly familiar voice announced.

Ruin's obnoxious appearances had _really_ started to annoy me.

"Shut up Ruin, you know that's not what happened," Chaos snarled.

"I'm just saying." Ruin shrugged and plopped down in the seat next to me. "The minotaur kids have always been kind of violent," he said, leaning forward and talking in a low voice like he didn't want to be overheard, even though I could tell there was nothing else he would rather be doing than speaking to a crowd.

"Go _away_," Elise groaned. "No one wants you over here."

"Hey, I can sit wherever I want." Ruin grinned, like he enjoyed annoying people. "But I don't blame you; the other Siren kids didn't want me to leave their table either."

Chaos looked like he would flip the table over any second. "You know, Ruin, your ego is kind of like a rip in some fabric. It just keeps getting bigger and bigger and someday it's gonna get you torn in half."

Ruin looked shocked for a few seconds, but it passed. In fact, he grinned at Chaos. The others around the table fidgeted nervously, like he and Chaos were two bombs about to go off at any moment.

Although he kept glaring at Chaos, Ruin spoke to me. "You know, I really don't understand why you eat with the snake-heads, Poison-Girl. They don't seem like your type."

"Sorry Ruin, I don't like dining with _cannibals_," I answered.

Now it was everyone else's turn to be surprised at me. I guess that was my anger issues kicking in. Everyone's gaze turned collectively, like at a baseball game when the ball gets hit really far away. They looked at me like I was on fire. Ruin, and everybody else for that matter, stared at me with their mouths hanging open, Ruin and Chaos's squabble quickly forgotten.

A smile tugged at the corners of my mouth.

Chaos noticed. He let out a small snort of amusement, and the rest of the table followed suit with bursts of laughter. Ruin's face burned red and his eyes flared with anger.

I nodded and stood up to leave before a grin could spread across my face.

* * *

**Daaaaamn Ruin, you just got buuuuuuuuuurneddddd.**

**Ahem. So, how is everyone's summer going? What do you think about Ariadne's new weapons? And why do you think Chaos and Ruin always seem to be fighting?**

**I start my babysitting job tomorrow so the update might be a little late. Wish me luck!**

**~Divide /0**


	5. Chapter 5

**Monday, June 17th, 2013 - Everybody's going insane!**

**To TrainerNami: Whoa. You're right! That's mildly surprising because I read over that chapter like a billion times... wow.**

**To 4EverEpic: Nice guess. But you'll just have to keep reading and find out!**

**Have you guys seen the TV show _Heroes_? Well, yeah, by season 4, pretty much everyone is going crazy.**

**Nevertheless, I won't make you go crazy waiting for an update while I sit in my basement watching Netflix, so here you go!**

* * *

I stood in a musty old room. It was littered with junk and random objects like bent swords and stuff. As far as I could tell, it was an attic. I walked over to the single dusty window at the end of the room and looked out. I was back at Camp Half-Blood.

Suddenly, I heard someone coming up the ladder and the trap door swung open.

"Come on, Seaweed-Brain. Don't hit your head like last time."

"I won't!"

It was the two demigods from before. Seaweed-Brain and Wise-Girl.

"Couldn't you have done this by yourself? You know I hate it up here." Seaweed-Brain asked.

"We're getting the quest for Chiron's mission, remember? We _both_ have to be here." Wise-Girl answered.

"Oh. Right."

The blond girl turned to the corner of the room. I moved to see what she was looking at.

The mummified figure absolutely terrified me. She sat on a three-legged stool and wore a tie-dyed dress. Why in the world would they keep that thing in the attic?

Wise-Girl bowed her head. "Oh, Oracle of Delphi, speaker of prophecies, slayer of the mighty Python, what is our destiny?"

At first, nothing happened. The mummy just sat there staring at us with glassy eyes.

Then, green smoke started spewing from the mummy's mouth. It reminded me of the colored smoke bombs that Kaia and I put in a teacher's desk once in 6th grade.

Then the Oracle started speaking:

"Beware, demigods, the half-bloods are strong. Fear the one that does not belong.

The fate of the eight is contained in her hands. As we speak, the monsters' army expands.

The harmony must be kept. The Mist is not just a concept.

The hatred that resides inside: monster or god, set aside.

The eighth of us is watching now. She will keep the balance somehow."

The mummy's mouth closed. And then, I might have imagined it, but I think she turned her head. And looked straight at me.

...

I sat up in bed and almost hit my head on the bunk again.

I looked around the room. There was only gray light flooding in from the window. Everyone else was still asleep. I was breathing heavily and I had a buzzing sound that came from inside my ear that wouldn't go away.

After I caught my breath, I plopped back down onto my pillow. It only took a few seconds to realize that I wouldn't be getting back to sleep any time soon. I sighed and went about getting ready for the day. My bandage had gotten unraveled again during the night. I'd have to get Chaos to wrap it for me again. In the meantime, I tried to put it back together myself. I concentrated and managed to weave a decent pattern with the strip of cloth. In fact, it was sturdy and tight. I'd done a pretty good job.

It had been about a week since I'd arrived at Camp Echidna. I'd made a ton of progress with my training, and Chaos told me that he'd never seen anyone learn as fast as me. I had also made a lot of friends. It wasn't really like me, especially with strangers like this, but it felt good. I felt like I was finally getting accepted somewhere. I still had no clue about who my mom was, but I didn't let that bother me too much.

I looked down at my bed. I was about to straighten the sheets because I had nothing better to do, but just then, I spotted something small and brown on my blanket.

"Hello little one," I cooed, putting my hand out in front of the spider.

It didn't move, so I figured it was dead. I was about to pick it up and take it outside, but just then the buzzing sound in my ears got really loud.

"Ouch," I said under my breath.

_You too?_ a voice asked. It seemed to be coming from nowhere.

"What?" I whispered.

_The air pressure today is quite heavy. Us spiders get the most horrid migraines!_

"Us spiders?" I glanced back down at the seemingly dead spider under my hand.

_Yes, Miss. Be prepared for some headaches and loss of balance today._

"Uh... okay..."

"Ariadne, what are you doing?" Elise groggily sat up and pushed her hair out of her eyes.

"Nothing," I said, putting the tiny spider back on my pillow.

"Go back to sleep, it's like six in the morning," she mumbled, flopping back down on her bed.

"But I can't," I hissed, but she was already asleep again.

I got up and walked over to the window. It was really fogged up and I couldn't see out of it. I considered jumping out of it again, like yesterday, but I figured that that wouldn't be the best of ideas, taking into account that no one else was awake yet.

I made my way downstairs and out the huge doors in front, passing under Latin and ancient Greek symbols. As soon as I stepped outside, I knew that this day was gonna be great.

The sun wasn't up yet, or if it was, it was blocked by clouds. In fact, _everything_ looked blocked by clouds. Mist was everywhere, and I could barely see three feet in front of me. It was chilly and dreary and mucky. In other words, it was _awesome._

It felt like I was in some horror film and that zombies would emerge out of the fog any second to eat my brains. I loved this kind of weather, where mist just covered everything. It made me feel... safe. I know it's kind of a weird word for it, but it was true. On the other hand, it made me feel like I could do anything, it made me want to do something dangerous. I wondered if that was just my thrill issues, or if all monster children had this problem.

I grinned at the sky and started skipping blindly into the fog.

Before I knew it, I ended up at the sick bay. But more precisely, the _cliff_ by the sick bay. I sauntered right out to the edge and swung my legs over the side. I nodded my head and hummed a song with the ocean waves below. It was strangely beautiful. The fog bouncing and hovering above the water, making it so the ugly, jagged rocks at the bottom couldn't be seen.

After a minute or two of that, I felt something on the back of my neck, like someone was _watching_ me.

I spun around and was met with a familiar face. I smiled. "Theo."

"Uh... hi." He stood awkwardly off to the side of the cliff, scratching the back of his head nervously, like he was guilty about being seen there.

"Come on," I said, gesturing for him to come sit by me.

He shook his head. "I'm... afraid of heights." After he said it, he seemed embarrassed about it.

"That's okay," I said, turning back to the sea. "More view for me, then."

"Do you like heights?" he asked timidly.

"Well, I can't say I don't like them. Sometimes they freak me out, but on a day like this..." I waved my hand around, gesturing to the mist.

"Yeah, I really love fog like this. We all do. It's why I got up early, just for this."

I threw my head back and looked at him upside-down. "Why'd you come here then, if you're afraid of the cliff?" I asked him.

"I don't know," he admitted, looking out to sea. "I'm not really scared of heights, I guess. It's more just this cliff in particular. Maybe it was because of this thing that happened when I was little."

"Oh?"

"A girl tried jumping off of this cliff once a long time ago, to see if she could clear the rocks."

"She didn't make it?"

"No, she made it across. It's possible; lots of people have done it. They made it into a sport, even, people betting on how far they can get into the water. It's always kind of creeped me out how easily some people can overcome their fears," Theo explained. "But then again, I was really little. Only about five years old."

"So, you were here when you were five years old?" I asked, surprised. And I'd thought _Chaos_ had been there for a long time.

"Yeah. My mom died when I was four, I think. Some scythian dracaena found me and brought me here. I've never left."

"Never left? Like... ever?"

Theo nodded. "I barely know what outside is like. They've taught me everything I know."

"Wow," I awed.

"Lots of kids here are like that. Most aren't so young like I was, but they stay here year-round."

I nodded. Then, a thought occurred to me. "Will I be like that? Will I ever have to leave?"

Theo thought for a moment about that. "Depends."

"On what?"

Theo finally came over to sit near me. Not right at the edge, like me, though. "Well, if you actually have somewhere to go if you left, you could. They don't make you stay. Usually they say you should stay to complete basic training, but you were only really here to get better from the dracaena poison. Demigods weren't bothering you and satyrs weren't picking up your scent, so it's not that dangerous for you in the real world."

"So, I could call up my dad right now, and have him pick me up from here, and I could forget about all of this and pretend it never happened?"

Theo stayed silent for a second. "Would you want that?" he finally asked.

I hesitated before answering. It was true that I liked it here so far, expect the occasional interruption from Ruin, but the whole "monsters are real" thing was way bigger than I'd thought. It was like I had to keep reminding myself that this was actually happening, and that these weren't just actors in some movie.

Plus, I missed my dad. It had really only been about a week for me, but what about my dad? Did me staying here mean I'd never get to see him again? And my spider Theodore? And the few people back at school that I liked to call friends just because they didn't call me a freak? Wouldn't they all miss me?

This place was weird, I'd admit; but it was freaking awesome, too. Knives and paintball and talking spiders were all super cool, right? But did I really want to live in a place where kids jumped off cliffs for fun? As much as I loved this place, it was dangerous. I could have a lot of fun here, blowing stuff up, etc. But was it worth it to live with a bunch of half-monster kids?

But then I remembered something. _I'm_ a half-monster too.

It was easy to forget, not knowing my parent and all, but these kids were like my _family_. They could teach me things, about this whole new world I had been thrown into. About the gods, and the demigods, and the monsters, and the half-monsters. It was all stuff that I still wanted to learn about! Did I really want to leave all _this_ behind?

"Not in a million years," I announced.

Theo smiled kindly at me, obviously relieved by my choice. "I saw you fighting Chaos yesterday. I thought you were really good with those knives."

I laughed. "Was I?"

Theo nodded. "Better than I ever was with knives. And I've been here eight years."

"Everybody's good at something different. There's gotta be something you like."

He blushed.

"Really?" I said. "Not anything?"

"Well..." his ears had turned pink. "I like... magic."

"_Magic_?" I asked, taken aback.

He nodded, face burning. "Healing and stuff."

"That is so cool!"

"I'm glad _someone_ thinks so." Theo looked down at his hands in his lap.

"What do you mean?" I asked.

"Well... most people don't like the idea. People think that children of the Minotaur should be into blunt force, like maces or axes or just plain hand-to-hand combat. Most of my siblings do, being so big and all, they're good at it. But... I'm not like them."

I nodded sympathetically. It's true that I noticed Theo's half brothers and sisters weren't anything like him. I'd seen that the first night I'd been at camp. Theo seemed much more intellectual.

"I'm the runt of the family," he said, forcing a smile. "I'm the youngest Minotaur kid right now. I'm the most recent. Some hero killed the Minotaur a few years back, a guy named Percy Jackson."

"A demigod?"

"Yeah. He's killed a lot of monsters, and he's pretty famous for it. I've always wanted to meet him, ask him how he killed my dad."

"But he'll come back, right? Like, he'll go to Tartarus and respawn?"

"Yup, that's how it works." He shrugged. "No telling how long it'll take though."

"You're lucky," I said. "I don't even know who my mom is."

"Well," Theo said, "I'd try praying extra hard tonight, you might get lucky."

"Praying? To a monster? Is that possible?"

Theo gave a small shrug. "Just a thought," he suggested. "But the Mist might help. Make your mom proud tonight, maybe she'll notice you. By the way..." he added, standing up.

I nodded, smiling up at him. "What?"

"We're gonna kick your butt at paintball."

...

I got the feeling that the word "paintball" around Camp Echidna meant more than just a sport.

All day, kids of all parentages were flooding to the arena to get in some last-minute battle training. I spent the day with Kaia learning to use my new knives. Kaia had this weird idea that I should name them something, so when I became a famous demigod-slayer or something, then people would remember my weapons.

I laughed at her. "_What?_"

"Come on!" she urged. "There are some famous blades out there. Like Katoptris or Riptide! Just think of how cool it would be if your knives were put in a museum someday."

"Honestly Kaia, even if I did ever get famous or something, why would I want my knives to be put in some dusty display case?"

"Oh! You're right!" Kaia said. "Why didn't I think of that before? Put them over a fireplace instead!"

I shook my head, but couldn't help but smile. As I did so, something caught my attention out of the corner of my eye. And, no, it wasn't Chaos making perfect bullseyes with a paintball gun over at the archery range. Well, _maybe _it was, but that's not what I'm talking about. It was Ruin.

He was standing over a rack of tridents, holding a net in his hands, surrounded by his everlasting, ever-giggling flock of companions. The second he saw me, he glared at me. The rest of his herd copied him with equally terrifying glances.

Kaia pulled me away before I could go over there and cuss them out, and it was probably for the best considering I had two knives in my hands, but I still wanted to tear something up. I guess I'd have to settle for a magic marker tonight for paintball.

* * *

**So what do you think of Ariadne's dream this time? And YES, I DID work really hard on that prophecy, thank you very much.**

**Also, who's gonna win paintball tomorrow?**

**good luck guessing,**

**~Divide /0**


	6. Chapter 6

**Tuesday, June 18th, 2013 - Camping!**

**Guess what. I'm going on a camping trip this weekend with my friends. I'm so excited. Except, I won't be able to update, which is unfortunate.**

**So, please enjoy your chapters while they're here!**

* * *

"Teams! Sound off!" Lamia stood on a makeshift stage of crates and cardboard boxes. "Bulls!"

The left side of the field erupted in shouts and taunts while the campers on the right started booing.

"Snakes!" Lamia yelled.

The people all around me burst into cheers and chants, dissing the other team while they booed right back.

"Captains," Lamia hollered. "Front and center!"

Elise pushed through the crowd, claiming her spot at the front of the pack. On the Bull's side, one of Theo's brothers, a huge guy with the same curly, brown hair as Theo stepped forward. The two captains shook hands, but not before each one of them licked their palms ungratefully.

When Elise returned to us, people quieted down and huddled around her.

"Okay people, you know the rules. No boundaries. Nothing in camp is off-limits. No headshots. Those pellets hurt. And guys," she glanced around at a few choice people, "no messing with the people on your own team, got it? The goal is to find the center flag hidden somewhere in camp before the Bulls do, _not_ to hit as many people as you can before the time limit is up."

I looked around and tried not to be too upset that Ruin was on the same team as us. The teams were split up by lodge, but the Medusa kids and Minotaur kids got to take the lead because they had won the last two games. Also on our side were the ventus and the empousa kids. The other side included the sphinx, Kampe, and telchines children.

As far as I could tell, the Bulls and the Snakes had pretty much been the leaders of each team and had had a rivalry for as far back as paintball had been invented. The fog and mist were definitely not helping. It made everyone antsy and twitchy, like they just wanted to get down to the battle already.

I refocused my thoughts just in time to hear that Elise had put me with the first half of the Medusa kids, whose job it was to sweep the larger buildings looking for the flag, while she took the others around on the offensive to eliminate as many opponents as possible. The leftover campers were to go around camp and try to find the flag. Lamia had promised it was hidden in plain view, but might be hard to get to.

Lamia started counting down from ten as our huddle broke up, ready to run off into the mist. The fog, mixed with the growing darkness around us had put visibility at almost zero. I could barely see my hand right in front of my face.

Chaos pushed a marker into my hands and I gripped it tight. He hefted a rifle on his back and I saw a pistol tucked in his belt. Must've been some pretty high-tech paintball guns to look so real.

"Three! Two! One!" We all counted down with Lamia and then charged off into the fog. We all had approximately sixty seconds of immunity before we could start shooting at one another. Apparently, if we got hit with any paintballs, or slashed with any markers, we had to go back to where we'd started on the field and wait for the others until the game was over. I followed Chaos and the other snake-heads up the side of the valley with the river trickling down its side, and ran towards the stables to check for the flag there. On the way, we passed a pair of Kampe kids, bounding over to one of the forges. Someone tagged them both before I could.

"Okay everyone, spread out!" Chaos hissed at us.

We each quietly made our way through the stables, stopping to say hello to the flesh-eating horses.

"I don't think it's here, Chaos," someone called down from the hay loft above us.

"Okay then, move out."

He seemed like such a leader. It was weird how he switched personalities like that. "Where to next?" I asked him.

"The arena," he announced, making an immediate right turn.

We burst into the round building, skidding to a stop at the sight of a group of sphinx kids. I hadn't even been here that long, but I knew how fast they could run. We didn't stand a chance. Us snake-heads all turned collectively to run out of the arena, paint splattering on the ground behind us. We laughed into the wind and spread out, all going in separate directions away from the building. I easily disappeared into the mist, and I got lost just as quick. No one had followed me out of the arena, so they must've been chasing after the other Medusa kids. I did a three-sixty, trying to figure out where the heck I was.

"Well," a distinctly familiar voice hissed from the gloom. "What do we have here?"

Out of nowhere, a sharp pain erupted in my cheek. I lifted my hand to my face and felt the paint drip off my fingers. Another pellet hit me from the other side, in the shoulder. Laughing came from all around me. I twirled around but apparently they were intentionally hiding in the mist.

"Ruin, I swear to the gods-"

Before I could finish my sentence, another paintball hit me in the back of my leg sharply, making my knee buckle. I fell onto my knees and Ruin came up in front of me.

"You idiot. Don't you know we're on the same team?" I rolled my eyes and started to get up, trying to ignore Ruin's siblings pelting me with paint from behind.

Before I could stand, Ruin pushed me back down and I fell sideways into the dirt. Anger flared inside me but before I could get up and start throwing punches, a pain grew in my temple, on the side of my head. It must've been something to do with the air pressure, like what that spider had told me. Ruin kicked me in the ribs. I got the breath knocked out of me and I sucked in dust trying to breathe. I coughed but there was no air to cough up. Meanwhile, Ruin's friends continued to laugh and shoot at me at close range. You might have never played paintball before, but those pellets freaking hurt.

"This is about that cannibals joke, isn't?" I choked out, head and ribs throbbing.

"Nope, but this is." He slammed his foot into my face like it was a soccer ball. I felt my face and my fingers came away bloody. I really hoped he hadn't broken my nose.

He drew his leg back for another kick, but before he could smash it down on my head again, he was knocked to the ground himself. I couldn't see what had pushed him down at first, but I do know that it was big enough to scare away the rest of Ruin's brothers and sisters.

"Cowards!" I heard someone shout. I couldn't quite make out the person though.

I tried to mumble something to the person, but it just turned into a string of cuss words towards Ruin. My head hurt, my ribs hurt, my nose hurt.

"Ari, are you okay?" a deep voice asked.

"Theo?" I croaked out.

"What did they do?" He knelt next to me and helped me sit up. Blood gushed from my nose but after Theo muttered some ancient Greek over it, it stopped hurting so much.

"Ruin just kicked me in the face. I'm fine now, thanks," I said in a quiet voice.

"Do you want me to walk to the-"

"No, I'm good." I stood up shakily and walked a few paces just to show him I could. The adrenaline was fading and it left me dizzy and wobbly.

Reluctantly, Theo nodded. "'Cause, you could tell Lamia-"

"Nah." I tried to shake it off like it was nothing. A broken nose, a bruised rib, it wasn't the first time I'd gotten into fights like this. I usually came out on top, but I guess now that I had a fair opponent like Ruin; I didn't stand much of a chance. Plus, I'd kind of been asking for it when I cracked that joke that night.

"So... you'll-" Whatever Theo was about to say to me got cut off by a loud whistle being blown from down in the valley. A moment later, a group snake-heads charged past Theo and me, a huge, billowing, red flag streaming behind them.

"I guess we won." I grinned at Theo.

He smiled back, but it was kind of forced, like he was still concerned about me. I ignored it and ran cheering after my cabin mates.

* * *

**Well, that was shorter than I expected, reading over it now...**

**Anyway, I'm gonna get back to packing for this camping trip. So, your review question for this is... what is your favorite character so far? And in case you're wondering, I like all my characters equally. Yes, even Ruin.**

**Thanks for reading and reviewing!**

**~Divide /0**


	7. Chapter 7

**Wednesday, June 19th, 2013 - DEMIGOD DIARIES BOO YEAH**

**GUYS GUYS GUYS I FINALLY GOT THE DEMIGOD DIARIES FROM THE LIBRARY I'M READING IT RIGHT NOW IT'S SO SAD AND CUTE AND HILARIOUS AT THE SAME TIME.**

**Ahem. Sorry for that. You can tell I'm really excited about it. Also, sorry for this late chapter! I was at work all day and then when I came home FanFiction Net was down! So here's the chapter _*cue dramatic voice*_ YOU'VE ALL BEEN WAITING FOR...**

* * *

"Ari, what happened to your nose? Is that blood?" Chaos asked me quietly at dinner.

I sat across from him, surrounded by chattering snake-heads, all talking about our victory, occasionally yelling over to the other side of the dining hall where the other lodge sat.

"If I told you I ran into a brick wall, would you believe me?" I tried to smile, but I don't think it worked.

"No," he answered sternly, setting his jaw.

"Attention, everyone!" Lamia stood on the stage at the front of the hall. The talking stopped immediately and everyone looked expectantly up at their camp director. "I'd just like to congratulate the Snakes on their most recent victory-"

Cheering and pounding on tables came from around me.

Lamia raised her hands again to hush everyone. "Now, I don't want to interrupt your celebrations, but we have a special thing to do tonight, don't we?"

If it was possible, the cheering this time was even louder than before.

"What's supposed to happen tonight?" I yelled to Chaos over the noise from the campers.

"Claiming!" he shouted back. "Undetermined kids are invited up to see if their parent will claim them. We do it every time the Mist gets really thick like this."

"Cool!" That meant that I might find out who my parent is tonight. That must've been what Theo was talking about before, on the cliff, about praying really hard today. But he also talked about making my mom proud... I wondered what she thought of my display with Ruin earlier.

"Who would like to come up first?" Lamia grinned holding out her arms.

A bunch of kids shot out of their seats from around the room, and Lamia picked one at random. The first one was just a little kid, barely ten years old, by the looks of it. She had blond-almost-white hair that stuck up everywhere.

"Care to remind us of your name, dear?" Lamia asked in a kind voice.

"Electra," she said, shyly.

Lamia nodded and bowed her head, muttering words I couldn't hear, probably in Latin or Greek. After a moment, nothing happened. The girl looked scared out of her wits, but then, suddenly, lightning cracked outside. After the flash, Electra's skin starting glowing brightly, and it lit up the entire room. People oohed and awed as the light faded. Ancient Greek letters floated above her head. Surprisingly, I could read them. They said: _"Electra, daughter of Venti, spirit of storms."_

Lamia read those words out loud to make it official. Everyone clapped and cheered and even Electra herself jumped up and down with delight, saying, "I knew it! I knew it!" Afterwards, she went to join her new siblings underneath the stained-glass window depicting a white horse running through a lightning storm.

"Who's next!?" Lamia shouted.

It went on like that for a while, kids coming up, their skin glowing, and then going to join their brothers and sisters. All of the kids had gotten claimed so far, but Lamia said that it was possible that someone didn't, and that if that happened, they'd just have to wait until next time to try again. Overall, it was a pretty joyful ceremony.

Finally, I worked up the courage to stand up when Lamia asked for another volunteer.

"Ariadne! Come on up!" she said.

As I rose from my seat, the snake-heads around me chanted my name. "A-ri! A-ri!"

Before I knew where my legs had been taking me, I was halfway up the steps to the stage. My stomach lurched and I felt really nervous. For the first time, I actually, genuinely wondered about who my monster parent was. I eyed Chaos at the Medusa table. It was unlikely that I was a child of Medusa; I hadn't ever been able to turn someone to stone, and I think that if I could, it would've happened already. Even Ruin's golden eyes met mine as I swept my gaze over the crowd. I hoped to the gods that my parent wasn't a Siren. I would've given the world to not be Ruin's half-sister. _Anything_ was better than that.

It turns out that I'd been too busy cowering at the fact that there was a probability that I could be Ruin's sister, that I hadn't even noticed Lamia utter the spell over me. Seconds passed in complete silence. I held my breath and I could hear my heart beating in my chest. I could've sworn that minutes went by without a single crack of lightning from outside. In fact, it seemed like years. Disturbing thoughts started running through my mind. I felt ashamed; maybe I was right about my mom being disappointed in me. Maybe I should've gone after Ruin to prove I wasn't a coward.

I shut my eyes tight and clenched my fists, digging my nails into my palms. _Please mom, whoever you are,_ I prayed. _I'm sorry for being a horrible daughter, but I promise to make it up to you somehow. So please, please, please tell me who you are._

I heard someone from the audience gasp, and my eyes flew open. My skin was glowing, just like the other kids' had been. I smiled to myself and silently thanked my mom. The light slowly faded but I kept my eyes out on the crowd of campers. I wanted to hear Lamia say the words, and for my siblings to stand up and cheer for me.

But the cheering never came. Lamia's voice never said the words. Everyone just stared at me, mouths hanging open. My heart rate jumped again, the anxiety flooding back into my system. My smile dropped as I looked up frantically to try to figure out what they were all staring at.

The words were already fading, but I managed to catch the first few words of the phrase.

"_Ariadne, daughter of Arachne, goddess of-"_

I instantly recognized who my mother was; I knew the myths well enough. Arachne was the goddess of spiders.

But it didn't matter to anyone what the last word of that phrase was, because all they needed to know was those two words: _Goddess of._

"She's not even a real half-blood!" someone called out, breaking the silence.

"Demigod!" another camper shouted at me.

Everyone erupted in booing and cursing, calling me a spy or a traitor, as if it were _my_ fault my mother was a goddess, and not a monster.

I was absolutely paralyzed up on that stage. I couldn't move an inch, but my eyes were all over the place, watching my fellow campers yell and shout at me. Some people even started throwing things like silverware and food. But that wasn't the worst part. The worst part was that these people had been my friends just a few seconds ago! I suddenly took everything back about what I'd thought about anything being better than having Ruin as a brother. Now, I would've traded this life for that one in a second.

The word _demigod_ pelted my brain and bounced around in it, echoing over and over again.

I found Ruin in the crowd. He was one of the ones throwing things at me. No surprise, really. He'd probably been waiting for something like this to happen. I think it was that picture of him that snapped me back into reality. I found my legs again and ran off the platform and out the little side door, campers laughing behind me.

I was half blinded by the fog and half blinded by tears, so when I wound up back at the cliff by the sick bay, I was surprised. The fog had finally starting to let up, probably from all those kids getting claimed. I didn't sit on the cliff like usual; I just stood there, staring at the sea, my toes hanging over the edge. I cried silently into my hands at the loss of all my new friends. All my new family.

_What will happen now?_ I asked myself. I really didn't want to think of what they'd do to me right then and there, so I just bit my lip.

When I heard panting coming from behind me, I didn't bother to turn around and see who it was. Probably just some stupid camper, coming to harass me.

"Ariadne!" the voice shouted. It was all too familiar and immediately made me feel ashamed all over again about being a demigod.

"Go away, Chaos." I could barely choke out the words and my voice cracked at his name.

He came up behind me and I could tell he'd been running all over trying to find me.

"Are you kidding? Not for a million drachmas." He pulled me into a huge hug. My forehead bumped his collarbone and he wrapped his arms around me. I buried my face in his shoulder and sobbed, not able to contain the tears anymore. I wanted to scream at the world, at my mom, at everything.

"It's okay," Chaos said in a soothing voice, stroking my hair.

I let go of him and wiped my eyes with my sleeve. "But it's not okay! I'm not a half-blood!"

"Ari, no offense or anything," he said, "but who cares?"

"Ruin cares," I said without thinking.

"Ruin? _Ruin!?_" Chaos grinned. "You care about what _he_ thinks?"

I shook my head, not able to come up with words.

"See? Then nobody cares. You're still here, aren't you? You're wicked awesome with a dagger. To me, you're not any less of a half-blood than you were twenty minutes ago."

I sniffled and stared down at my feet. Something caught my eye in the faint light. "What's wrong with your hands?" I said absent-mindedly.

"What? Oh, nothing." He stuffed his fists into the pockets of his jacket.

"Come on," I grinned, taking his wrists and holding his palms up to the moonlight. "Is that blood?"

He tried unsuccessfully to hide a smile. "Let's just say that Ruin won't be able to sing like he used to for a day or two with that jaw."

I stared at him for a second. And then I burst out laughing.

"Come on, I'll walk you back to the lodge," he said, trying not to laugh himself.

I suddenly realized how absolutely exhausted I was and followed him back to the lodge.

...

"But Chiron," Wise-Girl said, pounding her fist on the ping-pong table, "we need to figure out this prophecy, now!"

"My dear, we will. Just after this hand of pinochle."

I stood in a messy room with a ping-pong table in the center. The blond girl and the boy with sea-green eyes were there. Also, there was an old man sitting in a wheelchair at one end of the table, holding a hand of cards. And one of those half-goat, half-man things was there too. What were they called? Satyrs.

"But Chiron, why would the Oracle say 'beware demigods, the half-bloods are strong'? Aren't we the half-bloods? Why would she tell us to beware ourselves?" Wise-Girl said, ignoring the old man's words.

"Yeah, and who's the one that 'does not belong'?" the satyr asked.

"And she also said 'the mist is not just a concept'. What the Hades does that mean?" Seaweed-Brain questioned.

Chiron held his hands up to shush them. "You all know that the Mist is the veil over the mortals' eyes that protects them from the truth. It makes them see what they want to see, because their small minds cannot cope with reality. Sometimes it even affects demigods, you know that."

"What does it mean?"

"I was getting to that," he said, nodding. "The Mist can also be like a physical thing. A tangible object of sorts. It is all stored somewhere."

"Like in a holy storage unit?" Seaweed-Brain said.

"Where, Chiron?" Wise-Girl stammered.

"I think you know."

...

I slowly opened my eyes. Something wasn't right. It was pretty quiet and a few girls were just waking up.

I tried sitting up. I couldn't. Something was stopping me from sitting up. I felt it on my face, like hair or something, but thicker. I managed to wrap my finger around a piece of it. Once my vision finally came into focus, I realized what it was. A note was stuck in between the framework of the bunk bed above me. It read: _"How do you like your new web, demigod?"_

I was lying under a net.

I tried untangling myself from it, but it was strategically knotted and tucked in different spots. I couldn't get out. Some girls passed me and snickered, not even lifting a finger to help. I sighed, accepting defeat. "Elise. Elise. Elise. Elise."

"What?" she said groggily. I couldn't turn my head to see her, but I could tell that she had just woken up because of the small scream she gave when she saw me. "Oh my gods, Ari, let me cut you out of that!"

She knelt next to me and started slicing the cords. I didn't say anything as she did this; I just stared at the note above me. That is, until Elise had cut me out completely and she snatched up the net and note. "Come on," she said.

We marched through the whole camp, Elise holding the net and note, while I dragged my feet and kept my head down, trying not to be noticed. Everyone stopped to watch us pass. Some of them shouted out insults like "demigod," but most stayed silent. I even caught sight of Ruin, who oddly enough stayed quiet; though, I suspected that it was mostly because of the huge, blue bruise around his eye, and his very crooked jaw. I almost smiled at the thought of Chaos standing up and punching Ruin right in the mouth.

Before I knew it, we'd wound up at the camp offices. It was a small brick building that Chaos had told me was where Lamia lived. We passed through the screen door that had been propped open with a brick, and we walked down a short hallway to Lamia's office. Above the noise of a fan running, trying to keep out the summer air, we could hear voices coming from inside.

"Lamia! You can't just send her away like this!"

"There's no other choice! She's not safe here."

Elise didn't bother knocking; she just pushed open the door. Chaos was leaning over Lamia's desk, but he straightened up when we barged in. Theo was also standing in the corner of the room awkwardly. I slouched in the doorway while Elise went over and silently handed over the net and note with a frustrated look on her face.

Lamia looked at Chaos as if to say _I told you so._

"Are you okay?" Theo whispered to me, like he was afraid to break the silence.

I nodded soundlessly.

"What were you talking about? Before we came in?" Elise said.

"Lamia wants to-"

"Before you tell her, Chaos, she should know why."

"What? Why what?" I asked.

"It's for the best, dear. We really have no other choice."

"What!?" I shouted.

"We're sending you to one of the demigod camps."

There was a moment of stunned silence among all of us. She hadn't even bothered to sugar-coat it. Lamia had just _said_ it. _Like it was that simple._

"Tell me I did not just hear what I think I heard," Elise said.

Lamia looked at her and sighed.

"But you can't-! You can't just ship her off to some demigod camp!"

"But that's the only answer. She doesn't belong here. Not to mention..." Lamia trailed off and gestured to the net on her desk.

Everyone in the room broke out in shouting and yelling at Lamia, but I stayed perfectly still. The same words kept echoing in my skull, chilling my bones. _She doesn't belong here. She doesn't belong here. She doesn't belong here._

"I'll go," I said.

Everyone looked at me.

"I'll go," I repeated.

"You'll _what_!?" Elise said.

I looked at her, like, _You really want me to say it again?_

Elise kicked the ground and stormed out of the room.

"Don't mind her, dear, she's just angry," Lamia told me.

"But you can't just go!" Theo suddenly said.

"Yeah!" Chaos agreed.

"But I have to, guys, it's where I'm supposed to be," I said quietly. "I'm not a real half-blood. I shouldn't be here."

None of them said anything. I guess they didn't know what to say. Or maybe they just agreed with me.

Lamia rose from her chair and gestured for me to follow her. I did, with Theo and Chaos close behind.

"Am I leaving right away?" I asked.

She nodded. "That would be best. I'll drive you to the borders. You know, dear, I'd really give anything for it to be different. But this is for the best."

I stayed silent. It had really only taken less than twelve hours for my whole world to come crumbling down around me, and it scared me. My insides lurched and wobbled. My brain felt like it had short-circuited.

"Do you have anything to collect from the lodge, dear?"

I shook my head. "Nothing I'd want to keep." I remembered my Camp Echidna t-shirt folded up neatly underneath my bunk bed back at the lodge. "Let's just go."

At the edge of camp, there was a busted-up, old minivan. There was a special seat for Lamia's snake tail on the driver's side. She got in and pointed to the passenger side.

I took one long, final look at the valley. I didn't even notice when Kaia came slithering up to me and nearly tackled me with a hug. "I'm so sorry!" she sobbed. "I heard from Elise- she told all of us that-"

"It's okay," I tried to tell her.

"No, it's not!" she insisted. "You just smelled so much like a monster, I'm sorry! None of this would've ever happened if it weren't for me!" she sobbed.

"Kaia," I said. "It's not your fault. It's not anyone's fault. Nobody knew, what with the smell and the Nemean Lion's blood. And the venom. And the... everything."

She let go of me and looked me in the eyes. She was crying. Kaia placed her hand on my shoulder and nodded, her green snake eyes glittering with tears. Before she could totally break down and start weeping, she turned away and slithered back down into the valley. I guess that was like her goodbye.

I turned to Theo and Chaos, bracing myself for their farewells too.

Theo was on the verge of a meltdown, I could tell. He could barely choke out a simple _"bye" _before stumbling away, leaving me and Chaos. Even though I had only met him a week ago, I already had begun to think of him as some kind of brother, in some crazy, dysfunctional family.

Chaos scratched the back of his head. "So... it's, uh... been nice knowing you."

I nodded, choking back tears because he'd already seen me break down once in the past ten hours.

"I'll make sure to tell your dad that you- uh- transferred."

"Thanks," I said quietly. My eyes burned. I sniffled.

"Demigods aren't supposed to use phones, but there's these things called Iris messages that you could get someone to teach you..."

I nodded again, both of us knowing that'd never happen.

"Just... make sure you keep your anger in control, and, uh... don't eat too much ambrosia or nectar..."

I didn't even know what he was talking about, but it made tears stream down my face. "Bye Chaos."

"Bye Ari."

I felt like I needed to say something more, especially to him... something important. I suddenly realized something I'd forgotten. I undid the cord around my belt and held my knives out to Chaos. I had managed to subconsciously grab them before we'd left the lodge that morning. "Take care of these for me, okay?" I asked him.

He nodded. I could tell he was on the brink of tears himself, and that behind those glasses, his eyes were red and puffy. He stepped forward to take the knives, and as he did, our hands touched. And then, like he couldn't help it anymore, he spread his arms out. I hugged him goodbye, and as Lamia honked the horn for me to hurry up, I stood on my toes and kissed him on the cheek.

I got in the van without another word and watched his figure getting smaller and smaller in the car mirror, above the _"objects in mirror are closer than they appear"_ warning. I sighed and slowly closed my eyes.

...

I think I slept through most of the ride, but I could tell it had been a long drive. The scenery had completely changed.

"Where are we?" I asked groggily, not quite fully awake yet, the weight of the world just starting to weigh me down once more.

"Long Island, New York. Welcome to Camp Half-Blood."

I pushed the hair away from my eyes and got out of the van without looking back.

"Just walk past that pine tree, dear!" Lamia called after me. "Good luck."

I did as she said. The pine tree was the same as the one I'd seen in my dreams, standing on top of a big hill. When I got to the top of it, I noticed there was something wrapped around the tree. Once I got a closer look, I realized it was a dragon. A _legit_ dragon.

"Peleus!" someone yelled from a bit farther down the hill.

I looked up and saw it was a camper. A girl with curly caramel hair and lime-lollipop colored eyes.

"Hi!" she greeted me, bouncing on her heels nervously. "Are you mortal? What's your name? Why are you here?" she pelted me with questions that I didn't necessarily want to answer.

I turned to look back at Peleus the dragon. He snarled at me a little.

"I'm a demigod," I stated simply.

* * *

**Well, that first part was probably not that big of a surprise. I didn't go to extreme lengths to hide the fact that Ari's mom is Arachne, especially with Mark of Athena just coming out, so most of you know about the spider thing anyway. But what you didn't expect (for the new readers, at least) was that Arachne is NOT A MONSTER! And that little fluffy part in the middle? Yes, that was me trying to write a dramatic scene even though I'm not very good at it... did _you_ like it, though? You tell me.**

**~Divide /0**


	8. Chapter 8

**Thursday, June 20th, 2013 - Tumblr!**

**Hello again everyone! Someone in the reviews reminded me that I have to tell you about something important today!**

**I got a Tumblr! (Well, I've actually had it for a while but I hadn't told you guys about it yet.) It's i-was-divided-by-zero_tumblr_com (replace the _ with .) and there's a link in my profile and on my website. It will have some "bonus features" and behind-the-pages extras on it, along with updates on what I'm reading right now, etc. ****Speaking of my website, I re-did it again! It's easier to use and has a full About Me page on it, as well as links to writing tools and author's tips that I use a lot when writing.**

**So, check that out after you're done reading your chapter for today!**

* * *

"What did you say your name was again?" the girl asked me.

I thought about lying to her, but in the end I decided that whatever name I chose, I'd probably have to keep it for a while, considering I wasn't planning on leaving this place anytime soon. "Ariadne Weaver."

She nodded. "Like the princess. Cool. I'm Heather, Heather Shepherd."

My head snapped up. "Your last name's Shepherd?"

"Yup," she said, popping the P. "Why do you ask?"

"Do you know a boy named Chaos?" I blurted, not really thinking.

"Chaos? What kind of a name is that?" she sneered.

I sighed inwardly, forcing the picture of my friend back down into the back of my brain. "Never mind, it was nothing. You had the same last name, that's all."

Heather shrugged. "Common name."

I nodded. I looked around at Camp Half-Blood. I didn't really know what I'd been expecting, but this was definitely not it. It had seemed smaller in my dreams. From here, I could see tiny little cottages dotting the hill, and there was an open-air pavilion too.

"I'll take you to meet Chiron before we give you a tour. A demigod just stumbling over the borders isn't exactly the usual way we get you here," Heather explained.

"Well, I'm a pretty unusual demigod," I countered. She looked about my age, probably a little younger. She walked with a skip in her step that made her curly hair bounce. She wore one of the orange camp shirts I'd seen in my dreams plus a bronze chestplate, and she even had a sword strapped to her belt.

"Who's your godly parent?" I asked curiously.

"Iris," she answered, turning to face me and walk backwards. I could've sworn those sea-blue eyes had been lime-green a second ago...

"Iris..." I said, echoing the name to myself. "Can you teach me about Iris messages?"

Heather looked a bit shocked at first, but then she smiled. "Sure I can."

"Where's Chiron?" I asked, remembering the old man in the wheelchair from my visions.

"At the Big House," she answered, pointing to a huge, blue house up ahead. It reminded me eerily of the sick bay at Camp Echidna. I had to keep reminding myself that these clueless, little demigods didn't know about Camp Echidna. But I had to convince myself that I was one of them, also.

"So, how do you know about the gods?" Heather asked, breaking the silence.

I shrugged, trying desperately to think up an answer. "My dad told me."

"And he's mortal?"

"Yeah. He... uh... told me about this place when I was little. He just died and I don't have other family... so... I came here. It was the only place I could think of." I could tell there was part of her that wasn't buying it, because when I said it, it came out as more of a question.

"Do you know who your mom is?" she asked.

I shook my head.

We'd just come up to the stairs leading up to the wrap-around porch of the Big House when two older campers, a boy and a girl, came running up to us.

"Oh, hi Percy, Annabeth." Heather nodded respectfully at them.

I recognized them instantly. I have to admit, I thought they'd be taller. The one called Seaweed-Brain looked... messy. His black hair was really shaggy and his orange camp shirt was only half tucked in. The girl looked neater. Curly, blond hair, like in the dreams, but her gray eyes were just something you couldn't capture in a vision.

"Hi Heather," Wise-Girl greeted. "Who's this?"

"She just got here, this is Ariadne."

"Which satyr does she belong to?"

"I don't have one," I said, finally speaking for myself. My tone of voice was colder than I'd meant it.

The blonde eyed me suspiciously, hesitating; but the boy held out his hand for me to shake.

"Percy Jackson," he said. "Son of Poseidon."

"Percy Jackson?" I stammered, remembering what Theo had told me about a great hero by that name. "Like, the one that killed the Minotaur?"

He nodded, not at all questioning me on how I knew that. "Yup. What? Why are you looking at me like that? Is there something on my face?" He rubbed his hand over his forehead and Wise-Girl elbowed him in the ribs. I couldn't believe it. I stared at him. This guy defeated the freaking _Minotaur_?

"I'm Annabeth," the blonde stated sternly. She didn't hold out her hand or anything, she just stared at me, like she was trying to figure out the best way to take me down in a fight.

"Hi," I replied, just as stiffly. I didn't know why I was being so cold. Maybe it was because I'd spent the last few days at camp learning to hate demigods. Maybe it was just those annoyingly striking gray eyes that seemed all too familiar.

"Come on Ariadne, let's go meet Chiron. Then we can get you a spot in Cabin Eleven."

"Cabin Eleven?" I said, following her up the steps to the Big House while Annabeth and Percy sauntered away in the opposite direction.

She bounced her head. "Yeah. The Hermes cabin. All the undetermined kids go there."

"Hermes, like the god of messengers?" I asked. "You arrange the cabins by parent?"

"Yup. There's twelve, one for each of the Olympians. It's too bad, really. Iris doesn't get her own cabin. I live here, in the Big House."

"Cool, I guess."

"Yeah, it's nice. We get to live with our siblings and stuff. Sometimes it gets annoying, but not usually."

"Hey, Heather?" I said after a second. We were walking through an endless maze of hallways now.

"Hm?"

"Is there an Arachne cabin?"

She came up short and I almost ran into her from behind. "Oh gods no!" she said. "Arachne's the goddess of _spiders_! She doesn't count. Wait,_ is_ she even a goddess? I don't think so. She's a monster, right?"

My heart shattered. It was like my brain and lungs were balloons that had been slowly deflating for the last twenty-four hours and they had finally been popped, left airless and lifeless. Arachne wasn't considered a goddess here? This was all for nothing!?

"Whatever," Heather continued. "Athena cursed her or something. And don't you dare bring that up in front of Annabeth."

"Why not?" I choked out.

"Because Athena's her mom," Heather answered.

"Oh." That explained a lot.

Heather pushed open a door, it looked identical to all the other ones, but she seemed to know what she was doing.

"Chiron," she called. "New camper."

"Really?" I heard something moving around in the room and we both went inside. What I saw was really cool, but really disturbing at the same time. It was definitely the same old guy I'd seen in the wheelchair, but this time he was standing upright. On four horse legs.

"You're a centaur," I awed.

He nodded. "Yes, child. I am Chiron. What is your name?" The half-horse, half-man's head almost touched the ceiling.

"Ariadne Weaver."

"She came over the border without a satyr, Chiron. But she knows about the gods and everything."

He stroked his beard and mumbled something to himself. "Ariadne, dear, would you be as kind as to excuse Heather and me for a second?"

I nodded. "Sure, but she was going to take me on a tour."

"Maybe you could get Annabeth or Percy to give you a tour. They were just here a second ago."

"Yeah, we saw them on the way in," Heather explained.

Chiron nodded at me. "Perfect then."

I nodded back, and as I left and closed the door behind me, I heard the two of them in hushed whispers talking about me.

"She knew about Iris messaging too, and about how Percy fought the Minotaur..."

I shook my head out and tried to recall the path we took into the Big House in the first place.

...

"Annabeth!" I called. "Annabeth!"

"What?" she snapped.

"You're supposed to take me on a tour. Chiron said so."

I'm pretty sure she would've groaned out loud if Percy hadn't interrupted and said, "Of course we'll take you on a tour."

The three of us walked through the camp. It was an eerie echo of my first day at Camp Echidna.

"Stables, forges, volleyball courts, arena," Percy checked off as we passed them.

"And these are the cabins," Annabeth said, holding her arm out to the twelve little assorted houses.

"One for each Olympian god." I said.

"Yup!" Percy said. "Wanna see mine?"

Annabeth rolled her eyes as Percy pranced off without waiting for an answer. We came up on a long, flat building with tiny seashells embedded in the rock.

"Poseidon, right?" I recalled. "God of the sea."

"That's right." Percy looked incredibly proud of his tiny cabin.

"Do you have brothers and sisters?" I asked.

Percy shook his head sullenly, his cheerful smile dropping off his face. "Long story."

"Oh. So where do you live, Anna?"

"_Beth_. Anna_beth_." She clenched her teeth and looked at me like she wanted to tear me apart.

"Gods, sorry. Touchy," I apologized, not really meaning it.

"I'm Cabin Six. Athena, goddess of wisdom and battle." The way she said it sounded like she'd rehearsed it many times. She pointed to a cabin across the field, it had an owl over its doorway; Athena's sacred animal.

"Where's Cabin Eleven?" I asked, remembering Hermes. "I'm supposed to stay there."

"I _know_ that," Annabeth hissed.

"I wasn't testing you to see if you did." Anger bubbled inside me.

"Oh yeah? Sounded like it." She jutted out her chin and put her hand on her hip, or more precisely, the dagger in her belt.

"Hey, guys?" Percy interrupted.

"What!?" we both snapped at him.

"Uh... Cabin Eleven is this way."

...

The rest of the day went pretty much like that. I found it hard to not punch some of these snot-nosed demigods right in the face. Apparently I wasn't the only one, because everywhere I went, campers were bickering with each other. Athena kids and Ares kids, Aphrodite kids and Demeter kids, etc. The worst cabin by far was the Hermes cabin. It was full to bursting and I knew the second I first walked in that I would _not_ enjoy living there.

For one, everyone was always shouting and blaming each other for this or that. Hermes was the god of thieves, I remembered. His children, at least the claimed ones, were just the same. Some accused others of stealing his or her gold drachmas, and even the pranks around here were god-sized. The first sleeping bag they issued me was filled spiders. If I were in a normal mood, I would've never freaked out. But I wasn't in the mind for tricks and jokes that particular day, and for me the spiders held a way deeper meaning. And let me tell you one thing, the Hermes kids sure were surprised when their little prank retaliated and started crawling up their own shorts.

After that, no one tried messing with me for the rest of the day. No one even bothered yelling at me for climbing up on the cabin roof and not coming down until dinner. I stayed up there for a while, trying to picture myself on the cliff at Camp Echidna. I whispered to myself and pretended that Theo and Kaia and Chaos and Elise were there with me. My imaginary bliss didn't last long though, because a conch shell blew somewhere and I could tell it was time for dinner.

Meals were much different at Camp Half-Blood than at Camp Echidna. Tables were still separated by parentage, but it wasn't _optional_. Someone explained to me that Zeus, Hera, and Artemis don't have children because they took vows never to have kids or something. Poseidon was supposed to be the same way, but he kind of broke his promise. I thought it was all just a big waste of space, because what's the point in having thirty kids stuffed into one little cabin when there were three huge ones still open?

So that's how I ended up getting crammed in between two Hermes kids. Honestly though, I don't know where else I'd rather sit. Percy sat alone at his table, despite the many friends he had. In fact, he was pretty darn popular. If I had a choice to sit wherever I wanted, I'd sit with him. He seemed nice in a way. I glanced around at the other tables. All of them were equally stupid in different ways. Any Aphrodite or Apollo kid probably had a bigger ego than all of Ruin's family combined. The Ares kids were big and all about brute force; they reminded me hauntingly of Theo's siblings.

Annabeth was still giving me this evil glare whenever we just happened to make eye contact. Now that I looked closer, _all_ of the Athena kids were. I heard from the other campers that they were really brainy and smart, but I thought that a better word for them was _hollow_. Sure, Annabeth was pretty in a nerdy kind of way, but those gray eyes just made me shiver. They looked soulless and I concluded that they were all ax wielding serial killers on the inside. I figured that this subconscious hatred towards them probably had something to do with my mom, but I didn't think about that for too long.

All in all, I didn't like thinking of my mom, period. I tried to pretend that I was one of these clueless undetermined demigods and that I could get claimed by my true parent any second. It was too bad that I couldn't keep that up when Heather - who, in being a daughter of Iris, was _also_ thrown in with the Hermes kids - said that we'd have to get up and sacrifice some of our food to the gods. The whole concept was just kind of weird to me. Tossing a bit of food into a fire didn't seem like it would win us much favor from our parents, but I decided to just go with it.

I rose from my seat and elbowed my way to a decent spot in the line snaking towards the fire. One by one, kids dropped food into the flames, some of them whispering their godly parent's name, and the fire seemed to burn just a little bit brighter. When it was my turn, I held my plate over the hearth. I wasn't really that hungry tonight, especially considering that there were no crickets to eat here, so I ended up dumping most of my pizza into the fire. I chose not to say my mom's name, in case someone overheard, but I wouldn't even have gotten the chance if I wanted to.

All of a sudden, the flames turned jet-black and rocketed into the sky. Everyone in line and back at the tables stopped their conversations and turned to stare at me. I nodded my head towards the hearth and sauntered away like nothing had happened. People watched me intently as I skip-stepped back to the Hermes table and promptly took a seat right in the middle, people clearing out of the way to make room for me.

...

My days at Camp Half-Blood dragged on and on. It was really boring compared to Camp Echidna. There were no buildings to jump off of, no paintball either, just stupid capture the flag. All around me, campers were messing around, having fun with their satyr friends, but not me. No one bugged me after that first night. The Night of the Black Fire was the night everyone decided to ignore me. Even Heather, who had seemed nice at first, had taken to skirting around me when we crossed paths.

On my second day at Camp Half-Blood, I officially sealed the deal and crowned myself the queen of freaks.

Percy taught sword fighting that day, and when Travis Stoll nervously shoved a schedule at me, I saw that I had his class first thing in the morning. I had figured out that here, at Camp Half-Blood, they trained you in all sorts of areas of battle. Archery, sword fighting, and even wrestling were put down as mandatory courses. I was starting to think of this place as less of a summer camp and more of a training academy.

"But, like, what if someone is super bad at archery? Why would they still have to take it? Wouldn't it be better to spend your time getting good at something you're naturally talented at, instead of wasting your time on a hopeless case like archery?" I asked these questions to no one in particular as we dragged our feet over to the arena as one, big, collective, herd.

"Shut up," someone breathed, only to be elbowed by a few fellow cabinmates.

"_You_ shut up," I hissed back. I couldn't resist.

The boy broke away from the crowd and lunged at me. Lightning-quick, I dodged out of the way. I'm not quite sure how it happened, but the boy ended up face first in the dirt with my foot planted on his back. I stepped over him and continued walking towards the arena, unfazed.

"Freak," someone else coughed.

Before I could turn around to claw somebody's eyes out, I was swept into the arena with the rest of the Hermes kids. It looked similar to the arena at Camp Echidna.

Percy was already there, passing out weapons to those who didn't already have one. I got in line, anger still rumbling inside me, and Percy handed me a short bronze sword. Someone had mentioned a material called _Celestial bronze_ to me, and I saw that it was nothing like the Typhonian lead that the knives at Camp Echidna were made of.

The small bronze sword felt uneven and off-balance in my hand. The tip was too heavy, but when I turned it over in my hands it felt heavy the other way. It was extremely frustrating, and it definitely didn't help when Percy started showing us fighting moves and strategies.

I raised my hand and interrupted his speech about correct footing and posture. "But won't we just feel unnatural learning moves from you? Wouldn't it be better to find our own strategies?"

Percy stopped to stare at me. Everyone around me whispered and mumbled.

"Yeah, but-" he started.

"And then no one will know your fighting strategies and weak points and no one will be able to beat you with logic," I plowed on. "Can't we learn how to stay alive by ourselves? Wouldn't anyone who learns to fight from another person just ends up feeling clumsy and vulnerable?" I said, directly quoting Chaos from our magic marker lesson.

I heard someone next to me whisper, "Who _is_ this chick?"

Percy smiled, twitchily. "Why don't you come up here then, Ariadne?"

I nodded and stood up. The campers laughed. "You're actually gonna take on _Percy Jackson_?" one of them said.

I sauntered over to Percy and stood in front of him. I quickly analyzed his posture and stance for weak spots and chinks in his defenses.

"Your footing is all wrong," he said.

I shook my head and grinned. "You wanna bet?"

Percy reached in his pocket and took out a ballpoint pen. At first I was confused, but then he uncapped it. It turned into a bronze sword, like mine. A magic sword... great.

"Oh yeah, and I'll need a better weapon." I threw aside the sword and it skidded on the ground. "Anybody got a knife?"

Everyone's heads swiveled to look at a sullen Annabeth standing in the back of the crowd that had formed to watch our duel.

I raised my eyebrows at her.

"I'm not giving you my dagger," she snapped.

"Aw, come on Annabeth, just for a few minutes?" Percy made a puppy-eyes face at her and she broke, taking out her dagger and handing it to me, hilt first.

I bowed my head. "Thank you," I sneered.

"Ready?" Percy asked me, taking up his original stance again. "I'm not going to go easy on you just because you're new."

I nodded and slashed out quickly. Annabeth's blade wasn't exactly perfect, but it was close enough to the small jagged ones back at Camp Echidna. It was light and quick and small, just like me.

Percy jumped back, not expecting my speed. People started jeering taunts from around us, mostly cheering for Percy, of course.

"You better not hurt my blade," Annabeth called. "Or Percy, for that matter!"

"I won't!" I answered, ducking under Percy's sword. He had an advantage in that his sword was longer, but I was quicker, like always.

I had to remind myself that I had a real blade in my hand, and that I couldn't actually kill Percy, but that didn't stop me from giving him cuts up and down his already scar-riddled arms. I could see him slowing down, getting worn-out. We'd been fighting for a few minutes now and he'd managed to tag me plenty of times, but he was seemed to be thrown off-balance when paired with how quickly I moved. It was easy to get inside his little bubble of protection and nick him on his face or upper arm. I could tell that he had definitely learned his stance and posture from someone else, probably someone bigger than him, by the way he held his shoulders.

Finally, as if as a last resort, he ducked his head and charged at me. Instead of just jumping sideways, like any sensible person would, I leaped straight up and rolled over his back. Before he could turn around, I was up behind him, with an arm around his neck, and the knife pointing at his eye.

I let go of him, panting; I could tell he was still kind of stunned by his defeat. I returned the knife gracefully to Annabeth, who seemed to be seething with rage after what I'd done to Percy. I knotted my shirt sleeve around a cut on my elbow that Percy had made.

"Nice match, Perseus Jackson." I was shocked by the "us" that I'd added to Percy's name. I didn't even know how I knew that that was his real name. Somehow, I just felt like I was supposed to say that. I decided to just go with it. "I'll assume that I won't have to be taking any more sword fighting lessons. Thanks!" I walked with a skip in my step out of the arena.

* * *

**Hehe, she got you Percy. So, this scene is actually one of the main reasons I did my rewrite, because people were telling me how improbable it was that Ari could beat Percy. But I changed a lot of stuff having to do with the fight and how long Ari stayed at Camp, so I'm hoping you'll like this version a whole lot better.**

**Also, I've been planning this for some time now, but I've never gotten around to telling you about it. I was thinking of having a live chat type thingy where you can go on my website or my Tumblr and ask me questions about my writing or future projects of mine. What do you think?**

**~Divide /0**

**PS: This is probably going to be the last update for the week, because of my camping trip. I'll be back on Monday, though!**


	9. Chapter 9

**Monday, June 24th, 2013 - I have pie!**

**Guess who's back! My mom and I made a pie today so that's what I'm eating right now. I finished Heroes, by the way, so now I'm watching Merlin.**

**Anyway, enjoy your ninth chapter! This one contains one of my absolute favorite characters from the PJO series.**

**To guest reviewer AwesomeNinja: Nope, this story is placed in between The Battle of the Labyrinth and The Last Olympian. (I mentioned that in the author's note of the first chapter.) Rachel isn't the Oracle, they don't have cabins for minor gods (Heather and her siblings stay in the Big House. I mentioned that earlier, too.), and a lot of people haven't died yet. Thanks!**

* * *

If I had learned anything from my limited hours here at Camp Half-Blood, is that rumors spread like wildfire. Percy's cuts and scrapes proved that I won our little brawl, but people had started to twist the story around, saying that Percy had let me win. I didn't think that was the case, but whatever people wanted to think, I couldn't change it. I honestly didn't care.

The rest of the day, I tried a ton of other things around camp. Everyone suddenly expected me to be really good at everything, but it turns out I actually really sucked at everything. Archery was disastrous. Canoeing couldn't have gone worse. In fact, the only thing that I showed any promise in - other than sword fighting, of course - was climbing the gigantic rock wall at the edge of camp, which I could do in less than minute. It must have been my inner spider.

But on the other hand, the shunning got even worse.

At lunch, no one bothered to yell at me for cutting in line or for no longer scraping food into the holy fire anymore. Nobody complained when I wandered about the camp freely for the rest of the day, trying out whatever activities I wanted. I didn't care about anything and nothing mattered anymore. Like when you know you're about to lose a game, so you don't even try to win. It's not like I had anything to lose, though.

It was only when I found myself standing at the edge of the huge forest at the end of camp, when someone finally decided to pay me any attention.

"Better not go in there alone," I heard a voice say.

I turned to see who it was. The short, pale boy standing in front of me looked a little on the younger side of twelve years old. Although, for his age, he seemed very... dark. Dark hair, dark eyes, dark jacket, dark boots. Even his general aura oozed lifelessness. I wouldn't necessarily call it goth, but the skulls were a bit overwhelming.

"Sorry, what?" I asked him.

"Don't. Go in. The forest. Alone." He repeated the words for me slowly, like _I_ was the little kid and he was superior in every way. Or maybe that's just the way he normally talked.

"Why not?" I prodded, not at all intimidated.

He eyed me, like he couldn't believe how I dared talk back to him. "Don't you know who I am?" he asked, not really in a particularly terrifying way, but more like he was confused.

"No," I said. "Should I?" I bounced on my heels. Maybe this guy was actually important. Maybe I should be super scared of him or something. Whatever. I really didn't care. I'd become increasingly reckless since I'd gotten here and I wasn't about to stop now.

The boy looked taken aback, like he didn't know how to answer to my question. "Uh..."

I decided that this guy wasn't actually that special, because I figured I probably would've heard about him by now. Which brought up something else... he obviously hadn't heard of me either, because he was actually _talking_ to me.

"I'm Ariad-" I cut myself off, thinking for a second. "Ari," I decided. "I'm _Ari_, by the way. I'm new here." I didn't hold out my hand or anything because this kid didn't seem like the type to shake hands.

"Hi... I'm Nico." He nodded back at the forest. "Were you going to go in?"

"I don't know. Maybe I would, maybe I wouldn't." I could hear the roars of various creatures inside, even from here. "Why? What are you doing here? Were _you_ going to go in?" I asked, suddenly suspicious.

He faltered, like he was thinking of lying to me, but then I guess he decided not to, because he said, "Yeah. I was."

"But you said not to."

"That's true. But that doesn't apply to all people. You see, I'm armed." He pulled out his own small sword from his belt to show me. I almost squealed with delight at the sight of the black metal.

"Oh my gods! Is that Typhonian lead?" I stepped forward, temporarily forgetting the concept of personal space. I looked at Nico. He was obviously shocked that I knew about the Typhonian lead.

"How did you-?" he started, but then shook his head. "No, it's not actually Typhonian lead. It's Stygian iron, which is similar. Have you heard of it?"

I nodded, growing increasingly interested with this young demigod. "My friend mentioned it once."

"Is that where you learned about Typhonian lead, too?"

I sensed that this was hitting a little too close to home, but I nodded anyway. Something told me that this demigod was different than the rest.

"So, who's your friend?" he asked innocently. "I mean, he or she would have to be a demigod to know anything about Stygian iron, much less about Typhonian lead, which is even rarer than my iron sword here. But you stated that you were new, so you wouldn't have many friends yet. And you've been living with your mortal parent before you came here, correct? So that means that you've had no connection with the godly world beforehand. And _that_ means that you're lying about not knowing much about the gods before you came here."

I stood staring at him, bewildered and jarred by Nico's deduction. He didn't grin, as if he were proud to have tricked me, he seemed more... concerned. His eyebrows knit together and his eyes seemed to grow even darker, if that was possible.

"Tell me. Where you. Learned about. The lead." He was back to speaking in broken-up chunks again, and this time it actually did daunt me.

My eyes flitted back and forth, as if I'd find all the answers to my problems somewhere in the scenery. _I shouldn't tell him,_ I thought. _But I have to tell someone._

It was true. It'd been eating me alive from the inside out from the moment I got here. It was just ridiculous that there were all these half-humans, half-gods around me but not a single one of them knew where I'd come from. Surely they couldn't _all_ be that naive to think that only the _gods_ had children with mortals!

I finally got myself together, and was about to tell the most convincing lie I could muster up, when the words "Nico, can you keep a secret?" slipped out of my mouth.

He straightened up and inspected our surroundings. There were a few campers nearby, but not close enough to hear anything we would say if we whispered. Still, Nico caught my hand in his and pulled me towards the forest. His hand was cold. Ice cold.

We hiked aimlessly through the woods, disregarding any passing monsters on the way to wherever Nico was taking me. I didn't bother asking where we were going, but the fact that some of the monsters in these woods could eat us alive made me anxious to return to the safety of Camp.

All at once, Nico stopped and let go of my hand. He eyed the trees and bushes, even though we were far deeper into the forest than anyone would've dared to venture.

He didn't wait for me to actually explain my secret. He seemed to already know.

"You're a half-blood," he stated. "And not the regular kind."

I shook my head at him and before I could stop myself, I said, "Technically, we were the first ones to use the name half-blood. Demigod is the official term for half-gods; they just stole the name 'half-bloods' from us."

Nico nodded as if all his suspicions had come true. "But what are you doing here, at a demigod camp? Shouldn't you be at Camp Echidna? Don't tell me you're actually spying on these guys."

"You know then. About the camp." I didn't know if I was supposed to be scared or relieved.

"Of course I do." He held his arms out, palms up. "I'm a son of Hades."

That made a lot of sense, and explained all the skulls. Hades was the god of death. "Have you been there? To Camp?"

Nico shook his head. "I've been to the other demigod camp though. The Roman one in San Francisco, Camp Jupiter. I was planning on going to Camp Echidna next but..." He trailed off.

"Whatever," I said. "It doesn't matter. We're demigods, we couldn't go there anyway."

"You're a demigod? But-"

"I'm a daughter of Arachne, the _goddess_ of spiders." I clenched my teeth as I said it.

"Oh. The dracaena mistook you for a half-blood," he guessed. "That makes sense, you'd smell like one, and you wouldn't react negatively towards Nemean Lion's blood, either. There would be no way to tell the difference. It's a common misconception that Arachne isn't a goddess. The gods just cover the facts. They do that a lot, actually." His voice turned bitter, but I decided to ignore it.

"Yeah, and I've got an immunity to poison, too. Anger management issues, ADHD, the works."

Nico looked at me piteously. "I can see where that would bring up complications."

I plopped down on a conveniently placed fallen log and rested my head in my hands. "That's an understatement."

Nico came and sat down next to me, radiating coldness. "And it explains why you know so much about the gods, yet you don't know about nymphs or naiads or some of the minor gods."

I nodded, but stayed silent. I wasn't sure if I wanted to talk about it, but Nico plowed on.

"What's the camp like?" he asked. "The Roman camp was a lot different than this one."

I shrugged. "It's not like here at all. It's better. Friendlier. Not as many stuck-up, whining, little demigods, you know? No offense."

"None taken. Yeah, I bet they were nicer to you. You're probably a lot more like them than any demigod here. Did you have friends?"

"Yeah. I'd only been there a week, but I had lots of friends," I said nostalgically. My mind wasn't working right. Why was I telling this son of Hades about Camp? What if he told someone else?

"It must be hard," he said, sighing. "I know better than anyone what it's like. To be the outcast, the freak. No one likes a son of Hades. I'm an in-between half-blood, I guess."

"That's exactly how I feel. I don't belong at Camp Echidna, and I don't belong here, either."

"Then what's keeping you?" Nico asked me. "Don't you have somewhere else to go? You could leave, you know."

I shrugged. I was too tired to be thinking about that kind of stuff. It's not like I could seriously run away now, after all I'd learned about the gods. "I guess people don't seem so miserable here like they do at Camp Echidna," I tried to explain. "Like, they were happy, but not happy like they are here." It was true. The demigods here seemed to have a certain kind of joy to them that the half-bloods at Camp Echidna had always lacked.

"It's probably because they're always reassured by the fact that their parents are always watching over them. It might not be right at the front of the gods' minds, but there's always that little part of them that's looking out for their kid out of the corner of their eye. I was unfortunate enough to never have that privilege, as a child of the Lord of the Underworld."

I nodded to the accuracy of that statement. "But the children of monsters can't really have that either."

"I don't believe either of us ever will."

I looked up at him. I smiled. "We're two of a kind, Nico. Like you said: in-between half-bloods."

"Half-half-bloods."

We both laughed and I decided that I liked this guy. He was just like me. I stood up. "We should get back or else they'll begin to worry. Not like I care, but still."

"That's okay, you go ahead. I have some, er, calls to make. But Ari," he said.

"Yeah?"

"Because we're both gonna be kinda stuck here for a while, you might wanna give these stuck-up, whining, little demigods a chance. Okay?"

I hesitated, but decided he was right. I _would_ be stuck here for a while. I nodded. "Okay. I'll try."

...

"Chiron, this is serious!" Annabeth snapped.

"Calm down, child. Nothing will be resolved if you always have a temper like this."

"But I can't! We could all be in danger, Chiron. You heard Heather, she knew about the gods and Iris messages and everything. She knows her way around a knife, and she's good too. She's had training for somewhere, isn't that at all suspicious to you?"

"She got over the borders of camp. She can't possibly be a monster," Chiron reassured her.

"Yeah, without a satyr." Annabeth paused to straighten up, blowing a blond curl out of her face. "And she knew Percy's full name. Nobody calls him Perseus except gods. And monsters!"

"Can't I speak for myself here?" Percy broke in from the corner of the room. I hadn't noticed him until now.

"No!" Annabeth snapped at him.

"Annabeth, dear. You have to think rationally about this. There are a thousand possibilities about how Ariadne could've learned about all those things. She said her father had been quite knowledgeable on the subject."

Annabeth groaned. "Nobody will listen to me except my cabinmates! Shouldn't you listen to children of the goddess of wisdom?" Without another word, she turned on her heels and stormed out of the room.

Percy followed her out of the Big House and grabbed her arm. "Annabeth, what about Ariadne makes you so nervous? Sure, she beat me at sword-fighting, but so what?"

Annabeth shook her head. "You wouldn't understand. It's just something I can feel in my gut. It's just... something about that girl..."

...

"Yo, someone wake up the freak."

I sat straight up in my sleeping bag. I knew I should've tried to sleep on the roof.

Travis Stoll leaped backward and shook his spider-bite-speckled head. "S-sorry Ariadne, I didn't mean- I didn't know you were awake already-"

Just as I was about to stand up and give him hell, my conversation with Nico echoed through my brain. _"Give the demigods a chance, okay?"_ I heard him say.

I eyed Travis. "What? Did you say something?"

He shook his head frantically. "N-no! Nothing!"

"Okay!" I said in a cheerful voice. I looked around the room at the orange t-shirt-clad campers. Yesterday, I had refused to wear my newly-issued camp shirt, but today, I slipped it on over my head and stood up. In an odd way, I felt proud to wear it.

My cabinmates skittered around me as I rolled up my sleeping bag and propped it against one wall, like all the other bunk-less kids were doing.

I straightened up. "So what's the plan for today? I, er, lost my schedule from yesterday, by the way." I remembered the way the bits of ripped-up paper had blown away in the wind.

Connor, the other Stoll brother, spoke up when no one else did. "Cabin clean-up first, then we've got pegasus riding lessons."

"But it's okay," someone broke in quickly. "You can go and do whatever. We've got clean-up."

I shook my head. "Nah, I'll stay and help."

My cabinmates' eyes flitted back and forth, probably looking for a reasonable explanation for my sudden will to cooperate.

"Um, here." A little, brown-haired, brown-eyed boy held a broom out to me. "Help us sweep out the cabin."

I forced a smile and took the broom. "Okay."

We all went about cleaning the cabin, some people sweeping, some people dusting, and everyone with actual bunks made their beds. Clean-up took almost no time at all, because we had so many people helping out. My cabinmates still skittered out of my way when I came to sweep near them, but they slowly relaxed.

"Okay, someone go get the ladder," Connor said.

"Why? What's the ladder for?" I asked.

Connor nodded up at the rafters that held the roof together. "We've gotta patch up that hole"

I looked around at the bunkbeds and then back up at the ceiling of the cabin. "I'll do it."

The campers eyed me, coughing and shifting nervously on their feet. Without another word, I grabbed hold of a bunk bed and swung myself up onto it. After that, I leaped over and grabbed a wooden beam so that I was hanging off of it by my hands. I gathered momentum and swung up onto the next beam over, so that I was sitting on top of it.

I'd done this a million times on playground monkey bars; it was really not much different.

"Here, Ariadne." Travis reached up and handed me some material to put over the gap in the roof, and I reached up and nailed the boards in place. I tossed the supplies back down and sat on the beam, tipping backwards and falling off of it with a nicely executed backflip.

"Pegasus riding next, right?"

...

It turns out that I sucked just as much at pegasus riding as I did at anything else at this camp. The horses were skittish near me, like pretty much everyone else at this camp. I thought of the man-eating horses back at Camp Echidna and wondered if they would've liked me any better.

An Aphrodite kid taught the lesson, and once I actually got the horse to stand still for me, it wasn't too bad. Horses were never really my forte. I wondered if there were any giant arachnids in Greek mythology. Though the other demigods seemed to be having no problem with the horses.

_Where in the world is Nico?_ I asked myself. Probably with some other cabin, or off doing some all-important son-of-Hades stuff.

"Whoa!" My pegasus started bucking. Before Percy could come over to calm it down, I ended up on my back in the dirt. Without thinking, someone off to my left let out a chuckle. They instantly clamped their hand over their mouth after doing so, but I laughed too. I didn't even have to fake it that much. I imagined I looked pretty comical.

"Lunch break!" the instructor called.

Another one of the Cabin Eleven campers came over and gave me a hand up from the ground, but some others shot her looks. I guess it would be too much to hope for everyone to already be used to me all of at once.

I tried to get a seat on the end of the Hermes table, but everyone was pushing and shoving to get through. I ended up between a few undetermined kids, which seemed fitting for me.

I decided that while I was here, I might as well take Nico's advice to the next level and properly introduce myself.

"Hi," I said to the girl sitting across from me.

"Hi," she answered shyly.

"Hey, aren't you the one that came to help me up earlier?"

She nodded silently.

"I guess I never really thanked you for that. So... thanks!" I tried for a smile and she returned it. She had brownish-black hair and dark eyes. Nothing particularly special, and I probably would've mistaken her for a daughter of Hermes if she wasn't so quiet.

"You're welcome." I could hear that she had a little bit of a Hispanic accent. She fiddled with her silverware.

"So, I'm Ariadne. Like the princess," I said, feeling like I was doing all of the talking.

"I'm Laurel. Like the plant."

"Cool. Are you new here, too?" I asked.

"No." She shook her head. "I've been here for years."

_Years?_ I thought to myself. "But, you haven't been claimed yet?"

She shook her head again.

"I would think the gods have lots of time for their children," I stated. "I mean, they're the _gods_."

"Nope, it's not like that at all," the boy sitting next to me broke in. "I've never even met my dad."

"My mom didn't even know he was a god," another chimed.

"_Really_?" All this time I'd thought of the demigods here as spoiled and well-off because their parents were gods. I thought they always got whatever they wanted and that their mortal parents were perfect, too. Turns out they didn't have it all that much better than the half-bloods back at Camp Echidna.

"Most people here haven't actually met their godly parent," someone explained. "With the exception of heroes like Percy and Annabeth, of course."

I nodded. I'd noticed that Percy and Annabeth were a pretty big deal here. "So what did they do to be so great?"

"No one's told you yet? They saved the world! Like, twice! And they saved Camp Half-Blood even more times than that."

"Wow," I awed. Maybe demigods were actually useful for something, after all.

"So, Ariadne, where did you say you were from?"

"Wisconsin," I said. "My dad was a professor at the university."

"That's cool," Laurel said, nodding in approval. "My mom and step-dad live in Montana. My half-brother too."

"You have a brother?"

We went on to talk about our lives before Camp Half-Blood. She'd been trailed by monsters all the way here with her satyr friend that had been put at her school to look out for demigods. I'd figured out that satyrs here were kind of like scythian dracaena. Her parents owned a ranch in Montana and her brother, Aaron, was seven years old. She even showed me a picture of him.

"It's sad though, because I can never talk to him." She looked very homesick, reluctant to put the picture away again.

"Why not?" I asked. Hadn't Nico told me that we could leave Camp whenever we wanted?

"It's not very safe for us outside the borders of camp. Monsters can pick up our scent. You're lucky to have survived this long without a satyr."

I nodded, trying desperately to keep the image of Camp Echidna out of my mind.

"Plus, us demigods can't use phones."

I remembered what Chaos had told me about demigods and phones, but I hadn't thought about until now.

Laurel must have seen the confused look on my face. "Cell phones send up signals to monsters. It's like putting up a flag and saying 'Come and eat me! I dare you!' Or least, that's what they tell us. I've never tried it or anything."

"Well, that must be why no monsters have ever found me." I smiled. "My dad never let me have a phone."

Laurel laughed. "I guess his strictness was a good thing then."

I grinned as I realized something. I was starting to make _friends_ here at Camp Half-Blood. And it wasn't even that irritating.

* * *

**So, a lot of you have been telling me that Arachne isn't actually a goddess. Well, that's just what they WANT you to think! This concept will be explained more later, I guess, but for now: what do you think of Camp HB through Ari's eyes? And how about the Athena/Arachne rivalry here? And what about HOW ARI WILL NEVER SEE CHAOS AND THEO AND KAIA AND ELISE AGAIN!?**

**Nah, I'm just kidding. You'll probably see them again later. Probably.**

**BWAHAHA!**

**~Divide /0**


	10. Chapter 10

**Tuesday, June 25th, 2013 - Last rewrite chapter!**

**Hey everyone, guess what! We are officially all caught up to where we left off. So, without further delay, please enjoy the tenth chapter of Camp Echidna.**

* * *

On the way back to the cabins after dinner, the sky was growing dark. It was one of those great, spring-and-almost-summer sunsets that suggested that school would be out for vacation soon. It used to be the best kind of sunset for me, because it meant three months without worries when me and Kaia could just run around and set things on fire. Now, it made me feel dejected and bitter. Despite Nico's advice to stay positive, I found myself imagining my old school, Fairview Junior High.

Even though I had always hated the place, I kind of missed it now. Back when I didn't know about the gods and demigods and half-bloods, things were simpler. But even now, trudging back to an overcrowded cabin where basically everyone seemed to dislike me for no good reason, I don't think I would trade that normal, boring life for this one at all.

"Hey, Ariadne?" Laurel interrupted my train of thought.

"Yeah?" I responded.

"I was wondering, are you going to stay here for just the summer, or are you a year-round camper?"

I considered this for a second. I hadn't planned that far ahead in my unfortunate life yet. "Um... do most kids just stay for the summer?"

Laurel shrugged. "Depends. Most kids go back to school in the fall, but it all has to do with how powerful of a demigod you are, and... if you've got a place to go back to."

_Oh yeah,_ I remembered. _My dad's supposed to be dead._ "I guess that means I'm staying, huh?" I tried to put on a smile, purposefully making look unconvincing.

Laurel nodded but she didn't pry, which was good, because I don't think I could've made up a whole story about my supposedly dead father. So we walked in silence.

Ahead of me, I heard the Stoll brothers talking.

Travis whispered to Connor in a hushed voice. "Well, don't we usually make the newbies go?"

"Yeah... but this time..."

"Maybe we should go instead."

"Whatcha talking' 'bout?" I skipped up to them.

They both flinched and Connor blurted, "Border patrol."

"What about it?" I asked.

"It's Cabin Eleven's night to pick two campers to go to Half-Blood Hill to keep a lookout." Travis pointed to the pine tree on the hill. Someone had explained to me that it used to contain the soul of a girl named Thalia. Long story.

"Usually we make the newest campers go," Connor said before his brother could elbow him in the ribs.

"Oh, so it's my turn?"

Travis and Connor's eyes flitted back and forth as if looking for an excuse for me to not have to go. I knew from science class that people's eyes moved around like that was because their left brain was looking for a logical lie to tell. See? I didn't spend all of my time in school getting into trouble.

"It's okay, I'll go," I said. "I don't mind. Anything to help the camp."

The Hermes brothers still appeared nervous.

"Let me just go get a knife. Who's gonna be coming with me?"

"Um... Audra, I think."

I nodded. "Tell her to meet me at the Hill. I'll be right there."

I said goodnight to Laurel and skipped off towards the arena before anyone could say anything else. They were probably afraid to trust me with border patrol. That made me feel sad. In a way, I almost _wanted _to make them proud of me. Which was kind of disturbing. Since when did I need their approval? Since when did I care what they thought of me?

Before I knew it, I had snatched a dagger from the arena and was on my way towards Half-Blood Hill.

"Hey Audra," I greeted.

"Hi," she responded in a gruff voice. "Don't talk to me."

"Sheesh, okay." I eyed her large figure. She was definitely one of the bigger unclaimed demigods. I wouldn't be surprised if she ended up as a daughter of Ares.

Audra lied down in the grass. "You're first watch, don't mess it up."

I plopped down in the grass next to the tree and tilted my head back to look up at the sky for a while. Someone had told me about the Golden Fleece that Percy and Annabeth and a daughter of Ares named Clarisse went to get a few years ago. The dragon, Peleus, was a new installment. They told me to not worry because the camp hadn't been invaded in a while, but they still sent guards out each night just in case. I'd think the dragon would be enough, but apparently not.

The light breeze floating through the tree's needles made the Golden Fleece sway, shimmering like real gold. I wondered if it _was_ real gold. I tried to remember the story of the fleece from the stories that my father had told me. He used to paint a picture in my mind as he recited the myths of the gods and monsters and heroes. I knew some stories by heart. Atalanta and Andromeda and Calypso and, of course, Ariadne.

Ariadne was born the mortal daughter of King Minos of Crete. When Theseus came to slay the Minotaur, Ariadne helped him by giving him a magic ball of yarn to help him navigate the Labyrinth. The two fell in love, but before they could make it back to Athens, she was _accidentally_ marooned on an island. Dionysus, the wine god, found her and the two were married.

_Married to a god wouldn't be too bad,_ I supposed. _Even a wine god._ A lot better than here, anyway. I eyed a sleeping Audra.

Suddenly, I caught something in the corner of my eye. I swiveled around to look at the clump of bushes where someone was obviously trying to hide.

"Who's there?" I challenged. I jumped up and poised myself in a position where I could easily slash out at an attacker if need be. I passed my knife back and forth between my hands.

"You can sssee me?" A fang-toothed head poked out of the foliage.

"You're a dracaena," I breathed, letting the grip on my knife loosen just a little, though I wasn't sure why. This was a monster, wasn't it? And I'm a demigod on border patrol... so wasn't it my job to kill them?

"Ansswer the quesstion," she hissed. "_Demigod._ Unlesss..." She looked hopefully at me and took a deep breath in through her nose, smelling the wind. She started towards me.

I staggered back up the hill to the magical borders of the camp and thought about yelling for help, or for Audra to at least wake up. But something inside me stopped me.

"I won't hurt you if you leave now. I don't want to kill you, dracaena."

"And neither I, you. For you are no demigod." She slithered closer. I didn't know that dracaena usually talked like that, without abbreviations, like they were really old. In fact, now that I thought about it, Kaia seemed physically much younger than this snake-woman. How old _was_ Kaia, anyway, if all monsters are immortal? On that friendly thought, how many times had Kaia died before?

I shook the off-topic thoughts out of my head and focused on the current situation. "You're right; I'm not like the other demigods."

"A half-blood?" she asked.

I shook my head. "Not exactly. Now go away. I don't want to have to kill you, for Kaia's sake."

"Kaia? You know _Kaia_?"

I lowered my knife all the way this time. "Yeah," I said, shocked.

"My ssisster! Going off to asssociate with demigodss!"

"No- well- she brought me to Camp. The other one, I mean. The half-blood camp."

"I was jusst there. How did a half-blood like yoursself come to abide in a demigod camp such as thiss?"

"I told you, I'm not a half-blood. I'm a demigod." I saw Audra stir in her sleep next to Peleus, who also seemed to be sleeping. "Now go away or I'll kill you, I swear!"

"Nicce try at a threat, my friend. But you and I both know that'ss not quite true." With that, she circled around and slithered away down the hill through the tall grass. I sighed with relief and relaxed a little.

'_Not quite true'?_ I asked myself. Did that mean she didn't believe I would kill her? As I shifted on my feet and started to sit down in the grass again, I heard Audra speak in that gruff tone of hers. "Did you just... _talk_ a dracaena away from the borders of camp?" She was in awe.

"Um... no! I mean, sort of. Not really?" I stuttered. "How much did you hear?"

"I woke up just before that last part about you saying 'I told you I'm not half-blood, I'm a demigod," or something and then you threatened it and it just backed off! That was awesome!" I'd never seen someone change so quickly from hating me to admiring me. Honestly, it surprised me a little.

"Uh, well, it was nothing, really," I stammered. "It's not like just that one dracaena could've done any real damage or anything. She wasn't really attacking anyway..."

"But you just stood up and straight-up chatted with a dracaena. That takes guts! I thought you were a bit of a freak, but I totally take it back."

I hesitated. I guess I hadn't realized how close I could've just been to death, if it hadn't been for my unique half-blood/demigod smell, I probably wouldn't be alive right now. "Yeah," I laughed nervously. "I guess so."

"Oh, but you must be shaken down to the bone, you wanna go back to the cabin? You deserve it."

I nodded, taking advantage of her offer to let me leave. I didn't feel like sitting out there for the rest of the night with her, anyway. I shuffled down the other side of the hill back towards the cabin, but a break in the shadows made me pause. "Who's there?" I hissed for the second time tonight. "I really don't have time for pranks, if that's Travis and Connor out there." I squinted into the blackness.

"Just me." The whisper came from so close next to me that I could almost feel the breath of the person in the shadows.

I jumped a little but recognized the voice, even at a low murmur. "Nico, I was looking for you all day today."

He materialized out of the darkness and his pale face looked silvery in the moonlight. "Yeah, sorry about that. I had some important ambassador-of-Pluto stuff to do at Camp Jupiter."

"Nice timing. You'll never believe what just-" I started.

Nico cut me off, saying, "I know. I saw her."

"So what do you think? About the dracaena being able to smell me?"

"I think you need to be more careful. There are other mythical beings around here that can sense you're something a little less than a full demigod."

I nodded, thinking about the pegasi and even Chiron the centaur. From what I had pieced together from my dreams, other campers were already starting to figure out that something was up. As if I wasn't a freak among freaks already.

"I have to go to the Underworld again. I think I'll be back tomorrow, but I'm not sure. It's always iffy with shadow travel."

I had no idea what he meant, but I nodded and before I knew it, he was gone again. Oh well. I started back towards the cabins again.

...

The familiar scene of Camp Echidna filled my dreams. It was a pleasant change from the sight of Camp Half-Blood. It was early morning, just past sunrise, I suspected.

My old friends Chaos and Kaia appeared in the entryway to the lodge made from marble. Everything about the place looked the same as it had when I had left it. Barely anyone was there, so they must have gone to their daily activities already. I saw dust float around the light coming in through the windows.

Both of them looked sullen and distressed. The person that followed them was all too familiar. It was the dracaena from the night before.

"She said what?" Kaia snapped.

"I told you, sister, she said to me 'I am not a half-blood, I am a demigod.'"

"That can't be right," Chaos said, biting his thumb nail, which I'd never seen him do before. After a closer look, I could see that all of his fingernails were bitten down to stubs.

"She appeared content," the older dracaena stated. "That is all." She pivoted on her snake tail and left.

Kaia turned to Chaos. "Maybe it's better this way. Maybe she belongs there?" It didn't sound too convincing, considering it came out as more of a question than a statement.

Chaos's eyebrows knit together and a scowl appeared on his face. "Fine." He set his jaw like he always does. "That's just fine. Ari can stay there and become a freaking hero for all I care."

I couldn't see his eyes because he still wore sunglasses, but I'm sure that if I could, they'd be filled with anger.

...

"Ariadne! I heard what you did last night!"

"Yeah, Audra said you were awesome!"

I would've liked to say that I was getting sick of all the kids coming up to me and congratulating me on my heroic victory over the dracaena last night. But I wasn't.

Every time the tale got stretched a little a more, and built onto a tiny bit more, I just smiled and nodded and went along with whatever story Audra or some other kid had conjured up. To be honest, I liked the attention. But above all that, I felt guilty. I was pretty sure by this point that my dreams that I'd been having since I found out I was a half-blood- demigod, whatever -were trying to send me messages.

I also felt bad because the other campers kept twisting the story until it was almost unbelievable. By lunchtime, the report was that I had fought off the dracaena with my bare hands and had saved the entire camp from a sneak attack. These demigods sure were gullible, and in a way it made me ashamed of being one all over again. But on the other hand, people finally didn't hate me. Some still did of course, doubting my loyalty to the camp, considering I'd only been there a couple days. But most were becoming more and more accepting of me by a series of coincidental events.

In a way, it wasn't _that_ bad. I kept asking myself why I wanted their approval, but then someone would come up and throw his or her arm around me and say something like "I knew you'd turn out great!" and I would get this rush of satisfaction all over again. Even Annabeth had stiffly acknowledged my "great service to the camp, or whatever," as she put it.

Nico had returned, like he said he would. I saw him standing across the green between the cabins and I was about to go up and tell him about all the new friends I was making and that taking his advice had actually helped, but then I noticed that he was talking to someone. He was using his hands a lot, and his eyebrows were knit together. When he saw me, he waved me over and I moved forward reluctantly.

The other camper was familiar once I got a closer look, and I immediately wanted to be anywhere else but here. Percy Jackson.

"Ariadne?" Percy said. "You've met Nico?"

I jerked out of my own thoughts. "Uh, yeah."

He nodded. "Cool."

I raised an eyebrow at Nico as if to ask, _You're friends with this guy?_

Nico returned the look.

"I heard about that dracaena, by the way," Percy continued.

"Oh," I said. "Yeah. It was nothing." _Literally,_ I wanted to add.

"I think it was pretty brave of you, especially considering that you're pretty new here. Speaking of which..." he chided. "I was going to ask you how you beat me yesterday in sword fighting."

I racked my brain for a good excuse. "I'm fast," I stated simply.

"Yeah, I guess." Percy rolled his eyes. "But seriously, there aren't that many living things that can beat me, especially at sword fighting."

"Why? Haven't you ever gotten beat by a monster before?"

"Sure I have, but you're not a monster."

"Okay!" Nico interrupted, to my relief. "Percy, aren't you teaching pegasus riding today?"

"Okay..." Percy looked very suspicious, as if he knew something about Nico's disruption in our conversation was not right. Nevertheless, he turned and walked towards the stables.

Nico looked at me and sighed. "You beat him at sword fighting?"

I nodded.

Nico pinched the bridge of his nose. "What am I saying? Of course you did. I am way too young to be responsible for all of you, as if Percy wasn't enough already."

A grin spread across my face. "You know him pretty well then?"

"We've... been through a lot."

"So what were you two just talking about, before I came over?"

"It's a long story. You wouldn't get it."

"Really?"

"Yeah. It has to do with the River Styx and the titans and a ton of other really scary stuff."

"Then I won't ask," I said, laughing. I didn't think Nico was being serious at the time.

* * *

**YAY! REWRITE COMPLETE! So, I don't really have anything else to say... so I'm gonna answer some frequently asked questions from the reviewers!**

**Q. When is this story placed? - A. It's between The Battle of the Labyrinth and The Last Olympian.**

**Q. Do the monster half-bloods come back from the dead, since their parents do that? - A. Well, the gods are immortal but the demigods aren't, right?**

**Q. Do the half-bloods bleed sand like monsters? - A. Do the demigods bleed gold like the gods? I didn't think so.**

**Q. How long will this story be? - A. I'm guessing that at this point we are a little less than halfway through, but I have plans for a sequel, too.**

**Q. Will you put my OC in the story!? (Gives description of OC) - A. One word, people: NO.**

**Q. Wait, Arachne's a goddess? - A. Well, before I read The Mark of Athena, I was taught that Arachne was a goddess, and I was disappointed by the fact that she was a monster in the PJO books. Then I decided, why shouldn't she be a god? What if that's only what the other gods want us to think!?**

**Q. Why do you describe Annabeth like a bitch? - A. I don't describe Annabeth like a bitch. Ariadne does.**

**Q. How the heck to you pronounce Ariadne? - A. Repeat after me: _Air_ (like the stuff we breathe). _Ee_ (like the letter E). _Odd_ (like the synonym for 'weird'). And _nee_ (like how you pronounce the bendy part on your leg). Ariadne is the name of a Greek princess and they talk about her in The Battle of the Labyrinth.**

**Q. What do the names of the characters in this story mean? - A. ****Chaos is the immortal force that created Ouranos and Gaia (and also Aphrodite) so that they could make the titans and then they could make the gods, etc. Theodore's name didn't really mean anything when I came up with it, ****but it could arguably have something to do with the Latin root "theo" which means God or gods. As for Ruin, t****here really is no meaning for this one either, other than 'destruction,' but here's a fun fact: Ruin was originally going to be a son of the Sphinx, but then I realized that he'd have to be in the same lodge with the Minotaur kids. Whoops. And finally, Kaia, t****here's no explanation for this one either, but I know that it's supposed to be a Greek name. Originally, Kaia's name was going to be Maia, but then I remembered that that's the phrase that Grover shouts to get the wings to come out of the cursed shoes that Luke gave him in The Lightning Thief. Kaia also rhymes with Gaia, but I'll leave the reviewers to interpret that.****  
**

**IF YOU HAVE ANY OTHER QUESTIONS PLEASE ASK THEM NOW OR FOREVER HOLD YOUR PEACE.**

**~Divide /0**

**PS: Because this is the last chapter of the rewrite, you won't be getting another chapter until this Friday. Thanks!**


	11. Chapter 11

**Sunday, June 30th, 2013 - Completely new chapter! + 500th reviewer! + the flames are back :(**

**BOO-YEAH FIVE HUNDRED FREAKING REVIEWS. The 500th reviewer award goes to my good friend PhantomWhispers! You are very awesome, and all the reviewers are, for that matter.**

**That's right, even the guest flame. To which I have written a response: Just for your convenience, I put Ari through a Mary-Sue test. She turned out negative for Mary-Sue-ness, so I'm not too worried. Thanks for the review!**

**Okay people, the following chapter has never before been read by any human being except myself, are you ready for this? I think you are, because it's the chapter you've all been waiting for!**

**READ ON, MY FELLOW HALF-BLOODS!**

* * *

As I walked with Nico to archery, we kept passing satyrs. They would jump and look startled as they went by me. The more I thought about it, I realized that they'd all been doing that ever since I'd gotten there.

"What's with them?" I whispered to Nico.

When I turned to look at him, he looked about as scared as the satyrs were. "I think they can smell the monsters on you."

"That can't be good," I mumbled, walking faster.

Nico jogged to catch up to me, his coal black hair bouncing. "You know, you might want to steer clear of Chiron and Mr. D., too."

"Yeah." I nodded in agreement. I'd learned from the other campers that Mr. D. was a god. I hadn't met him yet, but I didn't need to know that he'd see right through me. I was kind of surprised that a god was working here in the first place. Don't they have better things to do than look after mere mortals? Then I remembered that they probably didn't. _Gods must have all the time in the world for everything,_ I thought.

...

That night, after Travis and Connor called lights out, and after the usual chatter and banter of Cabin 11 had subsided, I settled myself in my sleeping bag. I twirled a bit of my black hair around my finger and stared at the ceiling. I tried to drift off to sleep, but I was just jolted awake again by the occasional giggle or snore of one of my cabinmates. Just as I thought everyone was finally shutting up, I heard a noise from outside the cabin. I stayed still, because I might've imagined it, but I could've sworn I'd heard someone talking right by the door. It was a warm night, so we'd left the window on the swinging screen door open. I could hear crickets chirping from beyond the cabin walls, along with something else familiar.

"Theo, hurry up!" an impatient voice said from behind the door.

"Shhh," another person hissed back.

I had to pinch my arm under my blanket to make sure I wasn't dreaming. I wasn't.

"Just cast the spell already," Chaos mumbled.

"I am!" Theo responded in his distinctive deep voice. I didn't catch the following words, most likely because they were in Latin or ancient Greek.

A kind of smoke flowed into the room, but it was glowing. After it had all dissipated, I bounced up from the floor and turned to look at my friends. There they were, each with a shoulder in the door frame, pushing to get their head in first.

"Guys!" I sputtered. "What are you-? What did you do to my cabin mates?"

"Just something to keep them asleep," Theo assured, holding out his arm to me.

I ran head-first into them both, nearly knocking them out of the cabin. I didn't know if it was meant to be a hug or a headbutt or something else. "I thought I'd never see you two again!" I pulled away, intending to ask them why they were here, but Chaos began before I could speak.

"They had you sleeping on the floor?" Chaos asked, grinning. "What kind of camp is this?"

I shook my head. "It's nothing, we're just crowded. But, what are you doing? How did you get here? Why-?"

"Gods, Ari, I thought you'd be glad to see us!" Chaos interrupted.

"We're breaking you out of here," Theo said.

Smiling, I told them, "Just a second," and I darted back inside quickly and grabbed my backpack. I kept everything I'd gotten from Camp Half-Blood inside it, because there wasn't much room to put it anywhere else. I stepped over the other Cabin 11 residents to get back to my friends. I took a second to look back at Laurel, who'd convinced someone to trade sleeping bags so that we could be closer together. It had been a kind act, and I really appreciated it. I wondered what she'd think about me running away, if it was cowardly to choose to not put up with all the harassment here, and to go back to where my home away from home was, at Camp Echidna. Or maybe she would enjoy me being gone. In the back of my head, I'd always had a part of me telling myself that I'm actually really annoying and she secretly hates me. On the other hand, maybe she'd be happy that I was happy.

Stepping outside, I took in a deep breath of cold night air and after gently pulling the cabin door shut behind me, we took off running.

Chaos came up next to me, "Kaia was going to come to get you, but she couldn't get past the camp's borders."

I nodded. "Why did you come and get me, by the way?"

"Something's happening at Camp. Lamia said we needed you... plus, we were kind of planning this since you left anyway," Theo answered me, blushing.

I laughed. "Missed me that much, huh? Well, don't I feel loved."

We stopped at the top of Half-Blood Hill. Peleus was sleeping, so I guessed that Theo had used some magic on him too. The Golden Fleece hung in the branches as usual, swaying back and forth. I turned to look back at the camp, and my heart clenched a little. It's kind of hard to admit it, even now writing this, but at the time I felt kinda bad for leaving. Laurel and maybe a few other people might miss me, but they'd get over it, and so would I. Or at least, I hoped we would. For a second, I even considered telling Chaos and Theo that I wanted to stay there. But I'd spent my last few days at Camp Half-Blood missing Camp Echidna and my other friends. I couldn't back down now. Plus, there were campers and satyrs that were beginning to suspect me of something. I not only _wanted_ to get out of there, I kind of needed to.

As I swept my gaze over the valley, something caught my eyes near the edge of the forest. Even though anyone else would probably not be able to see him cloaked in the shadows, my eyes had gotten used to seeing him like that. Nico looked from me to Chaos and Theo, and then back to me. He gave the slightest nod, and in it he told me not so much as a goodbye, but more of a _"we'll meet again"_ kind of thing.

...

"Chaos, tell me honestly, should you _really_ be driving in those?"

"It's fine, I'm fine." Like mine, his mouth was a straight, impassive line.

"You should've seen him on the way up here," Theo mentioned from the backseat. "He's doing much better now."

Chaos nodded, but his jaw was clenched. "Told you."

"Yeah, but, like, how can you even see through those?" I said, teeth clenched.

Not only did it unsettle my stomach to be riding through New York in the middle of the night with a fourteen-year-old behind the wheel, but the fact that Chaos had to keep his dark glasses on during the drive made me feel green.

"It's okay, there are lights on the road," he reassured.

"_Barely._ How about if I promise not to gaze longingly into your eyes on purpose, then will you take them off?"

Behind us, Theo snorted.

"I am not risking that," Chaos answered, ignoring Theo.

"Not risking that I'm going to gaze-"

"Okay, okay! Just get in the backseat so you won't look at me sideways."

I got up and plopped down in the seat next to Theo in the Camp's van. I could see Chaos swipe off his glasses and blink his eyes in the rear-view mirror.

"You're right, much better," he sighed, relaxing.

I remembered the Greek myth about Medusa. How Perseus used the reflection in his shield to chop off Medusa's head, because then she couldn't turn him to stone.

Well, I definitely didn't want to chop off Chaos's head right then.

Theo spoke up for me. "I didn't know you had blue eyes, Chaos." He said it like it was nothing, like this was not a huge breakthrough.

"Wow," I mumbled. "First you're blond and now this. Anything else you wanna share with us?"

Chaos laughed. "I keep forgetting that you don't know what color my eyes are."

"Mmhmm." I nodded.

Then Theo whispered to me, "I thought you promised that you _wouldn't_ stare into his eyes."

I glared at him and hoped that Chaos hadn't heard.

"So," Theo continued. "How was your stay with the demigods?"

I glanced at Chaos, who had his eyes fixed firmly on the road again. I remembered my dream, about how he was upset about me admitting I was a demigod.

I decided to play it safe. "Not really the place for me. I thought it might work out in the beginning, but almost everyone there was really bratty, you know? Spoiled demigod kids, just like Kaia says."

"_Almost_ everyone?" Chaos broke in.

"Yeah, well, there was this one kid, Nico," I stuttered. "He was pretty cool. A son of Hades, and he-"

_Screeeee!_

The van took a sharp left, but Chaos kept it on the highway.

"What the heck was that?" Theo shouted. A roar came from the road behind us.

"I have no idea!" Chaos said. He slammed on the breaks and I lurched forward in my seat. He jammed his glasses back on his head so that we could look at him, and then pointed to the part of the road that we'd just swerved to avoid.

"Is that a _lion?_" I observed the figure more closely. A little larger than a regular lion, from the looks of it, though it was hard to tell from this far away.

"A Nemean lion," Chaos muttered. "What is it doing here, though? I knew that there were Nemean lions all around here, but, we shouldn't be able to see it, right?"

"_The_ Nemean lion?" I asked. "Like, the one that Heracles slayed a really long time ago?"

"Yeah, but _the_ lion had children, small ones that are the same species, but aren't the original. Like how pegasi came from _the _Pegasus."

I nodded. "Why shouldn't we be able to see it, though?"

Chaos took off driving again, mumbling something about mist.

Theo spoke up for him. "The Mist."

"The Mist," I repeated. "I've heard people talking about that. I never asked what it was."

"It's a kind of protection for us. It makes it so that mortals can't see monsters, or gods for the matter. It warps their perception into something else that they can comprehend."

"That's good though, right?" I asked.

"Normally," Theo continued. "But recently, there have been problems with it. It's been spread too thin, and it's making it so more and more monster sightings have been popping up everywhere. Like the lion we just saw."

"But we're half-bloods; shouldn't we be able to see through it anyway?"

"No, not necessarily. Sometimes the Mist doesn't show us what's really there for our own sakes," Theo explained.

I didn't really want to ask what that meant. "But how does that work? You said that the Mist is getting spread too thin?"

"It's like if you pour water onto a plate. We're the plate, and the Mist is the water. The water is trying to cover too much of the plate, but there's not enough for some reason. So there are parts of the plate that are still showing."

"What could cause that?"

"A bunch of monsters being around at the same time, or just a shortage of Mist in general. It's like, a physical thing. Stored somewhere."

I remembered my previous dream with Annabeth and Percy. "Like a holy storage unit," I whispered, more to myself than anything.

"Yeah, exactly," Theo said.

...

When we arrived at Camp Echidna- which took way less time than I thought it would, so I assumed that the Camp's van was most likely magical -we were greeted by Kaia and Elise and some other Medusa kids.

Kaia gave me a quick hug, but she got right to asking questions about Camp Half-Blood. "Did they train you a lot there? What were the other demigods like? Were the children of Ares really tough?"

I barely had time to answer any of them before Elise gave me a bear hug, lifting me up, so that I noticed how much taller than me she was.

"Come on," Chaos said to me, putting his hand on my shoulder. "Lamia will want to see you in the Camp Offices."

* * *

**BA-BAM! I told you it was the chapter you'd all been waiting for. Anyway, now that we know Chaos's eye color, you'll be finding a picture of him on the Camp Echidna characters page on my website. (There is a link in my profile!)**

**AND FOR ZEUS'S SAKE TO EVERYBODY who keeps bugging me about how Ariadne could not POSSIBLY beat a Son of Poseidon, THERE ARE PLENTY of things that don't add up in the ACTUAL series, too. Like the fact that Percy only figured out he could breathe underwater halfway through the first book, when he was 12 years old, or maybe the part about how Annabeth says "if a spider is within a mile of me, they'll find me," when there are actually more bugs in one square mile than there are humans on the earth, so why doesn't she have spiders stuck to her 24/7?**

**Anyway, it's just a plot device, people. It'll most likely never be mentioned in the story again, so just roll with it, okay? By the way, that^ message was only meant for the mean flames that point it out, not the nice polite ones. I like the polite ones.**

**THANKS FOR EVERYTHING GUYS!**

**~Divide /0**

**PS: Sorry if anybody got two email updates for this chapter, there was some problems with the url not linking to the chapter...**


End file.
